


Quasars Between Us

by Kefalion



Series: All About Harry [17]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Crossover, Gen, Loki is Harry's father
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-06-23
Updated: 2015-05-23
Packaged: 2018-02-05 23:36:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 30,370
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1836313
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kefalion/pseuds/Kefalion
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The summer is a completely normal one for Harry Potter, if you overlook the tiny fact that Voldemort is back, and that an agent shows up at Privet Drive to turn everything he knows on its head. Before long Harry is on the other side of the earth, smack in the middle of an upcoming war involving beings from different realms. He'll be fighting beside his uncle—against his father.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Summer is Interrupted

**Author's Note:**

> This story is created using the one of the prompts njchrispatrick provided in chapter 4 of the story A Happy Accident: 70 Years. (ff.net) It goes as follows:  
> "Harry was having a perfectly boring, ordinary summer. Well, aside from the whole 'return of Voldemort' thing. But that all changed when an agent of the American government showed up on his doorstep to recruit him for something. Apparently Lily wasn't all that faithful. Apparently Loki has a thing for redheads. And now Harry is being pulled along with 'Uncle Thor' into a whole new world."

Harry lay on his back in the warm dirt behind the flowers, right under the open living room window, waiting for the TV-news to start. Summer was dragging on. Everything was calm and quiet. The weather was the best England has seen in decades, sunny and near unbearably warm. That didn't make Harry happy, however. The fourteen, going-on-fifteen, year old had lived through a bad year, culminating in the return of a man who a whole world feared and the death of a schoolmate.

Voldemort was back and nobody believed it, no one but Dumbledore and his friends at any rate. The people of the wizarding world didn't believe; they didn't believe despite the fact that Cedric Diggory was dead. Harry had begun to realize that they didn't want to believe, and Voldemort was using their self inflicted ignorance by keeping a low profile. That was the conclusion Harry had come to as there had been absolutely nothing in the Muggle News proving that the Dark Lord had returned. There were no reports of mayhem, unexplainable disappearances nor murders. Harry did keep listening to the news every day though, keeping vigil. If anything happened, he needed to know. He also kept a subscription to _The Daily Prophet_ , Wizarding England's major newspaper. He only ever looked on the front page, though. If something noteworthy happened, it would be first page news.

"Boy!"

Harry startled as his aunt slammed open the front door and called for him. He was supposed to be de-weeding the flower beds so she knew that he was around. He crawled out from behind the hydrangea bush, got to his feet and hurriedly brushed dirt off his too large pair of shorts.

"Yes, Aunt Petunia?" he said, rounding the corner of the house and getting in sight of the woman.

She pursed her lips as she saw him; He cowered a bit under her disapproving gaze, trying to smooth down his messy hair, and pulling at the hem of his t-shirt where it had run up to show a patch of skin by his hip.

"I need you to go down to Tesco and buy 300ml of double cream." It looked as if it pained her when she stretched out her hand to give him a five pound note. "I want to see the receipt and I want every penny back."

"Yes, Aunt Petunia."

She turned around, her back stiff as she went back inside without sparing him another glance.

Harry sighed despondently and began to walk. It seemed as if he would miss the news tonight.

●▬▬▬▬๑ஐ๑▬▬▬▬●

"Sir," said Agent Sulido, gaining the attention of Director Nick Fury. "We got a 16% match for Loki." The same moment the moment uttered the statement, the numbers on his screen changed. "It's 49% now."

Nick took a piercing look at the footage that was displayed on the monitor. The frames showed someone who looked somewhat like Loki, though not completely. It was difficult to tell as the pictures were grainy; the cameras used to provide them were hardly up to SHIELD's usual standards. The individual in the images was a teenager, with shorter hair than the god who had stolen the Tesseract, but nevertheless the likeness was startling and their information said that Loki used illusions. It wasn't unthinkable that he would have taken some disguise, though he seemed rather too arrogant to do so.

"Where is he?" asked Nick

"This is a supermarket in Little Whinging, Surrey, England. The match is up to 76% now, but our guy matches another individual more."

"Who?"

"Harry Potter aged 14; he is a resident of Little Whinging. I suppose the mystery is solved, sorry about wasting your time, sir."

"Don't!" the Director barked the order as the man was about to click away the images to keep searching through the ever updating stream of footage. "I don't believe in coincidences," said Nick. "Find out everything there is to know about Harry Potter and report back to me. I want the answers within the next thirty minutes."

"Yes, sir!"

●▬▬▬▬๑ஐ๑▬▬▬▬●

Harry was sitting by the kitchen table eating his half grapefruit—which was all he got for breakfast because of Dudley's diet—when the doorbell rang. He didn't move though. He knew that his relatives wouldn't want him to answer the door; they didn't want anyone to see him. It was likely that whoever was on the other side wouldn't come inside either, so there was no need for him to run up and hide in his room. If push came to shove he could always slip out the back and remain unseen as to please the Dursleys. He popped in another spoonful of sour fruit in his mouth as his aunt got up to see who was at the door.

"Is this the residence of Harry Potter?" a male voice asked and Harry dropped his spoon, numbly hearing it clatter against the table and down on the floor.

"Who's asking?" he heard his aunt answer, but he couldn't tell what tone of voice she was using. He could guess that she would have pursed her lips in displeasure; he had been mentioned after all.

"I am agent Travis Stafford with MI6."

"What has he done?" Definitely displeasure now.

"If I could come inside, ma'am?"

"Yes. Yes, of course."

Harry heard the conversation and felt the urge to bolt. What was this? Some strange form of Death Eater-ploy to get to him? No, they would never pretend to be Muggles, thinking themselves above that. This must actually be MI6, but what in Merlin's name did they want with him?

Petunia got back in the kitchen and a man followed, a man dressed in dark suit and matching tie with a white shirt to complete the outfit; he looked like a typical movie agent with a buzz cut and sunglasses sticking up over the edge of his jacket pocket.

"Mr Potter?" he asked as he caught sight of Harry.

"Yes," answered Harry slightly hesitantly, "that's me."

"Mrs Dursley, if you would please sit down, as Mr Potter's guardian you need to be present for this conversation. And-" he looked at Dudley. "And Mr Dursley will have to leave."

Aunt Petunia made it very obvious that she wasn't happy about any of this, but she nevertheless sat down as the man from MI6 did the same. Dudley on the other hand was not moving, disgruntled about being left out.

"Go on, Dudley," said Aunt Petunia in a restrained version of the usual coo she used when talking to her son, "you can have a bowl of low fat ice-cream after dinner if you just go to your room for now. It won't be long."

"Fine," muttered Dudley grumpily and made to get up, the wood of the chair groaning as he lifted his large behind and lumbered out of the kitchen and up the stairs.

"Now, you might have heard me introduce myself to your aunt, but I'll say it again. My name is Travis Stafford and I work with MI6. Today, though, I am here as a liaison to another agency. Our American friends in SHIELD or, Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Deviation—bit of a mouthful I always thought. The reason I am here is because you have ended up on their radar, Mr Potter."

"What for?" Harry felt the need to ask, nervously moving the peel of the grapefruit around on the table, while keeping his eyes on the agent.

"Nothing bad, no need to worry. They were searching for a certain individual, using all cameras they could connect to, and facial recognition software matched you with the person they were looking for. The Director of SHIELD is a man who is very thorough and he demanded to have you investigated. He wished to be certain that there was no connection between you and this other man. A strict precaution you understand."

"Okay." Harry was getting a bad feeling. "So was there a connection?"

"We looked into it and discovered that records of you are sparse, Mr Potter, but we did find a birth certificate which gave us some troubling and important information."

"Oh?"

"There isn't any good way of telling you this, but James Potter is not listed as your biological father."

"What?" "What!" Twin shrieks of the question echoed through the kitchen, as both Harry and Aunt Petunia were startled.

"That Potter fellow my sister married, is not the boy's father?"

"Who is my father?" They asked in turn, their questions overlapping, both in when they were spoken and in what they inquired.

The agent allowed them a brief moment to gather themselves before he continued. "I apologize for being the one bringing such news, but the matter has become a concern of international security."

"Please tell me who my father is," said Harry. His world was already being turned upside down; he might as well get it over with. The man who he had initially been mistaken for was probably his real father, meaning that his father was alive. Harry had family. He wanted to know who his father was.

"Mr Potter, have you ever noticed that you have any strange abilities? Something beyond the usual?"

Harry gaped at him.

"I should have known," hissed Aunt Petunia, eyes narrowed. "You too are one of those- one of those freaks!"

Agent Stafford looked affronted. "Excuse me, ma'am? I'm not quite sure I understand what you're implying."

"You're one of those- one of those…" She was too upset to spit it out.

"What she's trying to say is that she thinks you're a wizard," Harry cut in. "Are you?" he asked eagerly.

"A wizard? What? No. What's a wizard?"

"You don't know what a..? Oh." Harry was beginning to feel like the amount of trouble he was in would be growing tenfold from here on out.

"What exactly is a wizard?" The agent was taking things much calmer than either of the two inhabitants of Number Four Privet Drive.

"Nothing." Harry denied it, knowing that he wasn't at all convincing. People weren't supposed to know. He was not about to tell a Muggle about magic; though, it seemed like he did know about _something_ super natural _._

"Mr Potter, it is very important that you tell me. I am here because international security is at risk. It is imperative that you help me to the best of your ability. Mrs Dursley, perhaps you can tell me something?"

"My-my sister," began Aunt Petunia and Harry could hardly believe his ears. She was going to tell the agent! She'd never told him; she'd been perfectly fine with him living in ignorance, but she was going to tell this stranger everything he wanted to know! "She, Lily, the boy's mother, she was different."

"Different how? Can you be more specific, please?"

"She made flowers grow in the winter, and she would float as she jumped off the swing. There were other things too. And that boy! That horrible boy she used to associate with; he was the same. Then she got her letter."

"A letter?" prompted Agent Stafford.

"Yes, an invitation to some school for- for people like her. And each summer when she came home, she wouldn't stop talking about the newts she'd transformed or the concoctions she'd made which would change the colour of your skin and-"

"What is it you are saying, Mrs Dursley?" the agent interrupted.

Sniffing loudly, Petunia answered. "My sister was a witch."

Agent Stafford frowned. "That's not a very nice thing to say, especially in front of her son."

"No, you misunderstand me, she really was a witch. She, she could do…" Aunt Petunia looked first to the left and then to the right, likely checking to see that no one had showed up to eavesdropped, having the neighbours know of this conversation was likely the worst thing she could imagine. She leaned across the table and continued in a whisper: "magic. She had a magic wand and all. He is just the same." She pointed at Harry who squirmed in his seat as the agent's gaze was directed at him again.

"Is this true, Mr Potter?" he asked, and Harry nodded minutely, reluctantly. "Perhaps this isn't such a bad thing," the man muttered next. "You've been taught to use magic?" Harry nodded again. "What can you do?"

"Many things, though nothing really advanced," he said vaguely. "We don't start learning advanced magic until we're sixteen."

"What would you consider to be _not advanced_ then? Anything useful in a battle situation?"

Harry gaped once more, incredulous. "A battle situation?"

"It would be good to know that you could protect yourself if needed."

"Eh, I suppose I know a few spells that could be useful. At least if the one I'm aiming at doesn't know how to defend against magic."

"Okay. That is good. Very good. Knowing that you are aware of magic and can use it does not change anything, however. Not regarding what I came here to talk to you about. We already suspected that you would have special talents because of who your father is."

"And are you going to tell me who he is? When I first asked, you wouldn't say." Harry was getting anxious. He had always been told that he looked a lot like his father—James Potter that is—to think that the man wasn't his father was very strange. His real father apparently had some special abilities, and he had gotten on the radar of this agency called SHIELD. Harry was beginning to believe that his father hadn't drawn their attention in a good way.

"I brought your birth certificate," Agent Stafford said, avoiding answering directly again. From a briefcase he took up from the floor, he pulled out a thin stack of papers, and put them in front of Harry on the table, pushing away the grapefruit peel in the process.

Harry read what it said. At first there wasn't anything strange. _Name: Harry James Potter. Born: July 31_ _st_ _. Mother: Lily Joanne Potter. Father…_ Here it got strange. The line was empty. On the next line though where it said the neutral word _guardian_ the name _James Daniel Potter_ followed _._

"It doesn't say who my father is," Harry stated numbly.

Agent Stafford nodded. "It does not. And the hospital you are said to be born at is a strange one. Saint Mungo's. We've found numerous files indicating that patients have been treated there, but nothing else. Does this have anything to do with magic?"

"I suppose it must, but I've never heard of the hospital."

"All right. Take a look at the next paper. This one was a lot more difficult to obtain. It took a few experts on paper to make the real thing appear and it was only by chance that they actually discovered what was hidden. I'm told it took some sort of experimental rays to see them. It beats me how they knew to look for anything in the first place, but our people and the people of SHIELD are very resourceful and do not see dead-ends. The second copy is a recreated one combining the information of the one you've seen and the hidden information."

Harry removed the first form and took a look at the next one. It was nearly identical to the first. The ink was slightly lighter; as if it was a copy—which it, of course, was—and the information on two lines was different. His name, and his father's name. "Haraldr Lokison. Loki Odinson," he read his name and his father's name. "I don't… Who is he?"

"Loki is the Loki from legend. He is a member of a long-lived race of powerful beings residing in a distant Realm known as Asgard. Recently he arrived on Earth through a portal. This portal allowed him to enter a top secret facility. He proceeded to steal a very dangerous artefact, harming and killing many of the people during his escape. In search of him SHIELD used facial recognition software, stumbling over you. Director Fury looked further into why you resembled Loki so much and found the truth of your origin. With him on free foot and arguably cognisant that you exist, it is too dangerous to simply allow you to be."

"You want to take me away from here?"

"Yes, Mr Potter. We do."

"That's backwards logic! You didn't say it, but you don't know if he knows about me. If he doesn't know about me, dragging me away from here will draw attention to me."

Agent Stafford gave him a long levelled glance. "We are aware of the risks, Mr Potter. It is possible that removing you from your home will attract unwanted attention, but further than that, we believe that you could be of great help to us."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N 24th June 2014
> 
> A new story! Sigh. What the inspiration wants, it shall receive. I hope this will be good. If you've found your way here it is possible that you've read my other story where I used one of njchrispatrick's prompts. They both have Loki as one of Harry's parents; Harry is about the same age in both, but I think they will turn out rather different. I hope you enjoyed this first chapter. Please share any thoughts you have, and I'll try to have the next chapter ready soon. Also, about James Potter and Lily Potter's middle names: Joanne is a tribute to J.K. Rowling, and Daniel is firstly because I named James's father that in another story and secondly because of Daniel Radcliffe. (This was written before Rowling wrote about the Potter family on Pottermore).
> 
> [This chapter was most recently edited November 2016]


	2. Across the Atlantic

Harry's summer was shaping up to turn out very differently from what he had anticipated. Voldemort had been on his mind when he rode the Hogwarts Express back to London. He had imagined the horror that was waiting around the corner now that the Dark Lord was back, and then, a few weeks into summer, life had taken a complete turn. He had been told that his own father—who was a very different man from the one Harry had thought—was a threat to the planet. His father wasn't a danger just Britain and the magical population, but to _the entire world_ , and perhaps worlds beyond theirs. It was a threat larger than any Harry had previously been aware of; and he was connected as he shared the man's blood.

The world with which Harry was concerned had become infinitely larger at the turn of a hand and he could not ignore it even had he wanted to. Of course, he still felt the need to do something about Voldemort. He would not forget about the Dark Lord any time soon—how could he when his scar always ached minutely as a reminder of what had come to pass? His desire to stand and fight the man who had killed his mother and _her husband_ —the people who had died so that he could live —had not diminished with the new revelation. Harry wanted the Dark Lord stopped before he could once again destroy lives, but Harry knew that he couldn't do much on his own. He was only fourteen, hardly qualified or capable of taking on a wizard with decades of experience with the darkest of magic. He especially couldn't do much if the adults around him wouldn't allow him to act in the first place, and from the experience he had when Sirius had escaped from Azkaban it wasn't likely that they would allow him to do anything. He would be locked away to be protected and that wouldn't help anyone. Here, though, were a group of adults who had approached him and who believed that he could do some good. He wasn't going to say no to that. Even though he didn't strictly know what they wanted from him.

Harry knew he was taking a risk; he might end up a lab rat, or possibly bait, but from contact with this agency he could gain a lot and he was willing to take the bet and pay the price should he draw the short straw. He could gain their help in return for his assistance. He planned to ask for help. An organization like SHIELD wouldn't want a wizard to go around killing people, and if they were alerted to the situation, they would be able to take action; something which wouldn't be possible if the magical world covered up everything or outright ignored the threat. Voldemort would be killing innocent, non-magical people sooner or later and the British government would be interested in stopping it and so would SHIELD.

Harry knew that Muggles weren't defenceless. Wizards might think so—as ignorant and full of themselves as they were—and if the Muggles being threatened were unprepared civilians it might be true that they had no chance of resisting. The military, though, would be able to fight, as long as someone told them of what to be wary and Harry thought that he might be able to provide necessary information with a bit of research, or he could be a window for them and other wizards could provide the knowledge needed.

His decision to leave Privet Drive had also been made easier because of Aunt Petunia. She had told both him and Agent Stafford that the only reason she had allowed Harry to live in her home all these years was because he had no one else to care for him. If his father was alive and the government wanted Harry, they could sort it out between themselves. She was done with him and everything to do with him. She would not have her family put in any more danger for his sake.

Harry couldn't hate her for it either; she'd always abhorred anything different and now they had learned that Harry wasn't even human. He was something else, something different and _alien_. Or at least half of him was. He had never noticed anything of the sort—that there was anything inhuman about him—but it made him wonder how many of his abilities were actually standard wizard ones and how much of it could be attributed to heritage from his father.

For example, could his ability to speak Parseltongue have something to do with Loki rather than Voldemort? He would prefer if that was the case —probably. In a book on Norse Mythology Harry had been given and had the chance to read on the plane journey to the States, he had picked up on rather a few interesting facts. If any of it was true, he apparently had an older half brother who was a gigantic snake prophesied to kill Thor the God of Thunder.

Harry had decided to take that and the rest of the stories in the book with a grain of salt. He knew very well what people writing stories could be like, having been a victim of them himself during the last school year, and he had no idea how much truth remained in the legends regarding his father and his people. As far as prophecies went, he was also sceptical. He had heard Professor Trelawney make some sort of prediction near the end of his third year at Hogwarts, but other than that he thought divination to be complete hogwash and regretted not having done as Hermione and quit the class. He might have done it if he like her had another class to fall back on; sadly he was stuck until NEWT level.

It did pain him to know that his father was the sort of person to draw negative attention of any organization working with upholding law and order. The idea he'd had of his father for the past four years had been that of a brave man; a man who did the right thing even in the face of death. Harry could take this new turn, however. It was easier than it might have been. He had spent his early childhood without ever hearing a good word about his parents, believing his father to be a drunkard who had gotten them killed in a car crash. This wasn't too different. Only this time his father was apparently out to subjugate all of humanity.

It hurt to know that Aunt Petunia was right in any way regarding the character of his parents. Lily had apparently cheated on James. But he wouldn't draw any conclusions about that either, the way Aunt Petunia had been eager to do. In the rant where she'd utterly dismissed Harry, she'd managed to spew many unflattering things about James, Lily and Loki. Harry didn't want to be like his aunt; he didn't want to make up his mind without knowing more. His newly discovered father might have his reasons for doing whatever it was he was doing. Harry hoped so, he didn't want Loki to be like Voldemort and he vowed that he would find out his motives and reasoning; only once he really knew would he judge. He wanted to give Loki a chance. He wanted a father and if he could have one… well, he was prepared to forgive a lot, though certainly not everything. If need be, he was prepared to distance himself from the man. Harry would not accept just anything on the basis of shared blood; he wasn't that needy, no matter what others might think. He need only remember his aunt and cousin to the cement the idea.

The book on Norse Mythology had been a gift from Agent Stafford who all things considered was a pretty decent bloke, and Harry was a bit sad that he wouldn't come along; it would have been nice to have a slightly familiar face around. The agent had to stay in England where he would have to report his discovery of magic to his superiors. Harry could imagine how well that would go over.

And that lead him to another point. _Merlin_ , he was in so much trouble. He had broken the International Statute of Secrecy, though he supposed that some muggles must know about magic, besides the families of Muggleborns, that is; he couldn't see how anything could work otherwise and the secret services and people working on defending the country might be more entitled to the knowledge than most.

Could wizards really keep their world a secret without any help from muggles in key positions? Maybe. It did sound incredible and unlikely. His uncertainty when he pondered the question alerted him to how little he really knew about the wizarding world, and he promised himself to find out more once this thing was over. For now, though, he needed to educate himself on what lay ahead. That meant reading the book he'd been given and paying attention to anything and everything people around him said.

The plane he was riding on—and that had initially made him a little bit nervous, since he'd never been on a plane before and it was nothing like riding a broom or even a hippogriff—was small and of military issue. Its path through the air was mostly smooth, which should have allowed him to spend his time however he wished. Concentrating for long was not easily done though.

During the journey from Privet Drive to the States there was ample time for his thoughts to go down many different paths. He could imagine the outcry that would follow once the people in the wizarding world, who were invested in his safety, noticed that he was gone. Yet, he couldn't bring himself to care overly much. He believed that he would be safe from Voldemort in America. The Dark Lord would have no reason to search for him there, unless someone informed him that Harry was there. That was unlikely, as no one magical knew, and the Muggles he would be associating with were some of the best people in the world when it came to security and secrecy. If that wasn't enough, then nothing would be, and if so it didn't matter in the first place.

He was under the impression that he would be anything but safe, considering the reason they were bringing him in. But when had he ever been safe? Learning more about his heritage seemed more important than the possibility of danger and if the man who was his biological father was planning on doing something which would end up with people being hurt, he felt obligation to at least try and do something about it.

He wasn't leaving England without telling anyone, however. Before he'd left Privet Drive he had sent Hedwig to the Burrow with a message. He hadn't told Ron a lot, just that he would be away for the time being and that he would try to be back in time for the start of term in September. With a bit of luck no one would even realize that he was gone. Who would care if he was? Only Ron, Hermione, Hagrid and Sirius had ever been in contact with him during the summers. Sure, they might be a bit worried about him, but it wasn't likely that anything more would come out of it. Probably. Hopefully.

There was the fact that Dumbledore had believed him about Voldemort's return and that might change matters. Still, Harry had made his decision and he was intending to stand by it. Going along with SHIELD was the best thing he could do both for the time being and for the future if they could return the favour of help. He had to try.

He slept a bit on the plane. The journey across the Atlantic was fast aboard the plane, all the same it took a few hours and he had been told that being well rested might be good for him once they arrived. He didn't know what to expect. He didn't trust SHIELD beyond his own high hopes. He had no reason to trust them, and all that more reasons to distrust them, as it were. If he was the son of a man they were trying to stop, they were sure to use that. As he had pointed out to Agent Stafford, it was stupid to uproot him if they were doing it to protect him. They were going to use him, so he was going to use them too. He wanted to know more about his father and the place he came from. SHIELD were the ones who knew where he could start looking for the answers to both and so it was in his best interest to go with them.

●▬▬▬▬๑ஐ๑▬▬▬▬●0

"Sir, agent Jepson has been in contact. ETA eight minutes," agent Maria Hill informed Director Nick Fury who was standing on the bridge of the Helicarrier overseeing the proceedings and waiting for this announcement.

"Good," Nick said promptly. "You will be out to greet the boy. He will be your responsibility."

Hill did not protest. It was not in her nature to question orders, but her blank expression told the Director enough. "Speak freely, Hill." He didn't suggest it as much as demand it.

"I do not approve of bringing him here, sir."

"Elaborate."

"We know hardly anything about him. What he told the man MI6 sent to collect him opened up a whole new can of worms. We are not prepared to accept a wizard in our midst. The boy being Loki's son should warrant caution in the first place. When we first discovered him, I thought that we should have left him alone for the time being, and I am still of that opinion."

"It is true that the discovery of magic does complicate matters," Fury allowed. "The contact we've so far had with the Ministry of Magic has not been pleasant."

"I understand, sir."

"It took some time for me to make them see things from our perspective and agree on that having us know about them is for the best. After that they've grudgingly passed information through and I've learnt a lot of things that worry me, and some things that are less worrying. Following that I have not yet debriefed you on Harry Potter's magical history."

"Sir?"

"Walk with me." Fury led the way out on the deck where Hill would need to be to greet their guest in a few minutes time. The open air would also make it more difficult for someone to listen in without being noticed and though he did put some cautious trust in the people aboard the aircraft—he'd handpicked all of them himself—they did not need to know everything.

"He is famous in his part of the world," Fury began the explanation as they entered a corridor which would take them outside. "Were he a handful of years older, his abilities and personality better tried and evaluated, I might have been tempted to make him a part of the Avengers Initiative."

"On what grounds?"

"When Potter was a child there was a magical civil war happening in Britain. James and Lily Potter fought against a wizard who wished to kill or enslave all normal humans, which of the two that was his goal remains ambiguous. Anyhow, they were targeted and killed. The sources say that the leader of the terrorists died that night too; some whispers, however, claim that he is not as dead as they believed. Potter has claimed to have seen him; the boy claims that he fought this terrorist leader only a month ago. Their newspaper is discrediting him and the people who believe him. What's true I cannot say, but the stories all make it clear that Potter would oppose people like the man who killed his mother and he has already shown some skill in doing so."

"But he isn't more than fourteen years old, meaning that you don't want him to be a part of the Avengers-team, which brings me back to my concern. Why do you want him on the Helicarrier, sir? Wouldn't it be better to place him at one of our other facilities if you wish to keep him out of the conflict?"

Fury didn't immediately answer.

"What are you planning?" Hill pressed. They were out on deck now, wind reaching them, though it was hardly as strong as it would be if the Helicarrier was in the air. At the moment it was floating in the calm sea off the coast of New Jersey.

"I'm planning to do what has to be done to protect as many people as possible."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N 20th September 2014:
> 
> I hope you enjoyed the chapter. What will happen next? I'll try to have the answer for you soon.
> 
> [This chapter was most recently edited November 2016]


	3. Distractions

"Buckle up kid, we're about to land."

Harry startled out of his half slumber as one of the agents piloting the plane, an agent Jepson Harry thought, touched his shoulder, giving it a light shake and told him that they had arrived at their destination. Harry followed the order, pulling the seat belt secure, and then he leaned forward to glance out through the windows in the cockpit where the pilot was once more seated. There weren't any other windows in the plane, so if he wanted to see what was going on it was his only choice.

As he peered between the two pilot's seats, all he could see was a thin strip of blue water and an expanse of equally blue sky lit up by bright sunlight from their left. It was odd to think that it would be the same time of day, or maybe even earlier, than when they had taken off. They hadn't even spent a full five hours in the air, travelling at an incredible speed which once more made Harry think that wizards were underestimating muggles to a degree that was frightening. They had managed to catch up with the time difference, chasing the four o'clock hour.

As the nose of the plane tilted down, Harry began to feel deceleration and he had to lean back in his seat, no longer able to look outside as the inertia pushed at him. They didn't land the way he'd expected though. They had taken off in what he perceived as a normal way, speeding up until they rose into the air, but now they came to a standstill in the air, the jet motors moving so that they were facing down, and slowly they were lowered to the ground, touching down softly. He could barely feel it when the wheels impacted with the ground.

Before they were even truly still, agent Jepson had moved passed him and pressed a button to open the door of the hull and a woman was marching up the landing. She wore a neutral expression on her face and Harry gulped slightly. He got the feeling that she was far more than she first appeared. She was not a person he would want to get on the wrong side of.

"Mr. Potter," she said, "welcome to SHIELD."

* * *

0.0.0

* * *

 

Harry sighed. This wasn't what he had been hoping for. He was in a training room together with Maria Hill. He was demonstrating his abilities, showing her one spell after another. Hill had wanted a show, even after he told her that the descriptions in his school books, which he had generously offered to her, could tell her everything she could possibly want to know. Besides, SHIELD had a bunch of pamphlets on the wizarding world that was directed to muggleborns and their families. Harry knew this because Hill had asked - ordered - him to go through and affirm them the day before. It wasn't as if they lacked information or informants. Hill had not listened to any of his arguments however, demanding to see his magic in practise, telling him that it was an evaluation both of the spells and his capability.

At an adamant nod from the woman, Harry concentrated, lifted his wand and said the incantation for the next spell clearly. "Incendio." Orange flames erupted from the tip of his wand, bursting forth about two feet before him. He allowed the flames to spurt steadily for a moment, giving the recording device set up in the room time to record the magical output. Once it gave a small beep, to notify that it had the information, Harry released the spell, extinguishing the fire. He knew what would happen next. On the count of three. One. Two. Three.

"Good," the agent said curtly, right on cue, writing down a short note as she did so. "The next one on our list is aguamenti, the water-making spell."

Harry was certain that this demonstration served more than one purpose, that there was more to it than he was being told. She may not be succeeding, but Hill was clearly doing her best to distract him. The change in how she acted, from one hour to another, had been very subtle. If it hadn't been for the pause when she talked to someone over the com, he wouldn't have noticed it. She was just as professional as she'd been ever since she escorted him from the quinjet, which he had been informed was the technical term for the plane he had arrived on, the day before. Hill's blue eyes were as calculating and observant as they had ever been, her back just as ramrod straight and her tone clipped and precise. Still there was an added guardedness in how she would tense when someone walked past the door to the training room and her hands sometimes twitched as if she was about to reach for the gun she kept by her hip. Something was going on in the base, something they didn't want him to know about.

And that was another thing. While the people of SHIELD had been fairly forthcoming with information, giving him plenty of answers when he got the chance to ask any questions he could think of the previous day, quizzing Hill on their resources, their objective and the current situation, he had very strict orders about where on the Helicarrier he was allowed to move. He had access to a large room, which was completely his, with a nice bed, and an adjacent bathroom and a small kitchen area, but that was it. As long as he wasn't escorted, he was stuck in his assigned quarters. He was under orders to only go with agent Hill and two men he had yet to meet; Director Fury and agent Coulson. If anyone else told him to do anything, he  _should_  disobey. He felt as if he was a dirty secret; well, definitely secret in any case.

"Potter!" Harry's attention snapped back to an irritate Hill.

"Sorry," he muttered and raised his wand, hurrying to perform the spell to dissuade her ire before it could take root, he didn't want to find out what would happen if she actually got angry. "Aguamenti!"

* * *

0.0.0

* * *

 

"You wished to see me, Sir?"

"I did, Hill. The situation has changed. It is now more important than before that Potter do not wander around. You did well on distracting him as Loki was brought in."

"Thank you, sir."

"It is essential that Potter and Loki do not meet each other without our direct involvement. We need to have control over what is said between them. Loki may be a megalomaniac, but he is a smooth talking one and we do not need him deceiving and gaining control over Potter. What we need is to show him from his worst side and confirm Potter's loyalties."

"How are you planning on arranging that, sir?"

"We'll see. I'm thinking about allowing Thor to know about the boy. It depends on how he acts these coming hours. If he can be depended on, I believe that introducing the two could be beneficial. Potter would have someone to talk to, who knows about his place of origin, but who is on our side in the fight. Before making that decision we have ro, as I said, evaluate Thor. His appearance was, while expected, impossible to calculate for, and we do not know the whole story. While this happen we face another challenge; keeping Stark from finding out that Loki has a son." Fury grumbled something unintelligible under his breath. "That man should be put on a leash."

"I'll do what I can, sir. Coulson knows Thor form before. He'll be able to determine what mindset he is in."

"You are correct."

"Stark will be occupied for now, tracing the Tesseract, but I'll keep an eye on him."

"Good, see that you do Hill," his gaze intensified, "because I don't have an eye to spare."

* * *

0.0.0

* * *

 

Thor felt useless, standing around watching men of science at work. This was not his area of expertise; he had nothing to add which would be of any help to them. He had conversed extensively both with the Director and with agent Coulson, imparting his limited knowledge on Loki's plans and state of mind, giving a brief overview of the events that had passed since he was last on Midgard. The Director had asked him what he would be prepared to do to make his brother talk and he had truthfully said that while he would do what he deemed necessary to save Earth. He didn't believe that talking to Loki would be of any use, and a more direct approach would likely increase the resentment between them, not providing any further information, but creating a more dangerous foe in the future. All he could do now was wait, and though he had gained some level of self-perception and restraint as a result of the events leading up to this, idleness remained something he struggled with and he felt certain that it would always be so.

The night was dragging on and a short while ago he had placed himself as a silent presence in the room where Tony Stark and Bruce Banner were working diligently. He knew that any new development was likely to come from here. The Tesseract was their objective, and using science to find it was their current approach. Should something else of importance happen, the two scientists would be informed and staying by their side, meant that he would know too.

"Hey, big guy?" Stark called out, and Thor was pulled out of his reprieve. "Do you wanna blueberry?" The man came over to him with a small bag in his hand, offering it.

"Blueberries?" he quarried and struggled with getting his hand inside the small bag, grabbing a few of the small, round berries. "I remember these," he said, delicately eating one in a very uncharacteristic way, but contrary to popular belief he was able of savouring things, including food. "They grow richly in the regions of Midgard I visited in my youth. The taste brings back memories. Some good. Others not so."

"Hold on," Stark interrupted as Thor was about to fall back into memories. "What is this?"

"What?" Banner said, moving around the workplace to look at the same screen as Stark, Thor did the same. "Is that a kid?" he asked incredulously. "On the Helicarrier?"

"Yeah…" Stark said slowly. He flipped up another image on the screen. "Loki's still in the cage, and yet..." He flipped back. Sitting on a bed, with his legs crossed, studying a book, sat a youth who strongly resembled his brother. Enough to merit suspicion. "I wasn't aware that we got an offer of  _buy one, get a miniature for free_ ," Stark muttered. "I would have noticed if we'd brought in more than one guy."

"My brother has some talent with illusions, often making copies of himself to trick foes in battle, they way the Captain observed as you first confronted him. Perhaps this is another trick of his," Thor said musingly, offering an explanation.

"What would the point be?" Banner added. "The kid is just sitting there, reading. I don't see any reason for Loki to do this. And they are monitoring him. SHIELD is obviously aware of this."

"Yeah, if it's all the same to you, I will find out exactly what's going on." With those words Stark removed the image from the screen in what Thor deemed a precaution. Should anyone come inside the laboratory it wouldn't be good if their discovery was noticed. The man then proceeded to walk out the door. Thor and Banner remained unmoving, until the troublesome man turned around from the corridor outside the lab looking at them. "Are you coming?"

"No, I'll just stay here. Stay out of trouble," Banner said, fingering nervously with a pen he was holding.

"Suit yourself. Thor?"

"I'll come."

They moved through the well-lit corridors, Thor knowing that Stark had looked at where in the base the youth they had observed resided.

"Where are you going?" Coulson was walking through an intersecting corridor, noticing them and the businesslike air around them.

"Investigating," Stark answered shortly, not slowing his stride.

"Stark," the agent warned.

"Are you aware of a Loki-lookalike in your crew quarters?"

"A what?" Coulson looked steadily at Stark who felt obligated to stop and meet the man's gaze.

"What I say is that I discovered a video feed from one of the living quarters where a kid who looks an awful lot like our resident villain, is sitting reading a book as if it is perfectly normal for a teenager looking like the clone of another person to be in a security agency's base during a code red."

"No, I was not aware of this. I suppose we need to know what is going on. Lead the way."

Stark did just that, and with the agent accompanying them none of the other people walking through the base thought about hindering them. Soon enough they were stood outside the right door and with Coulson's clearance showed at the door, the way was open.

The three of them entered, and a pair of green eyes behind a pair of bulky glasses was immediately trained on them. The Loki-look-alike dropped the book, jumping up. "Agent Coulson," he said. "Is something the matter?"

"I don't know. Is there?"

"What? I don't understand."

"What trick are you playing? What is the purpose of this?" Coulson pressed and when they only received confused silence, Thor tried.

"Brother?" he asked, taking a slow step forward. "Is that you?"

"W-what?" the boy before them stuttered. "I- oh." Realization showed in the change of expression on his face, eyes growing large, before settling into slits. "You think I'm him. You think I'm Loki."

"Got it in one, kid," Stark said flippantly, leaning casually against the doorjamb, his bag of blueberries still held in one hand. "So if you aren't him, or one of his illusions, which I'm still not buying completely, who are you?"

"I'm not sure I should say, apparently I'm very secret," he grinned wryly, deprecatingly. It was an expression that strengthened his resemblance to Loki, but Thor was sure that he was the only one who could see it. It was not an expression his brother had worn for a long time and his two companions wouldn't know of it.

"Yeah, I had to go through quite a few encryptions to find you," Stark agreed. "I think we've earned the knowledge."

"You know my name," said Coulson.

"Yes. You're apparently one of the people I'm supposed to obey, but something's wrong if you don't know about me."

"Who has been in charge of you?"

"Maria Hill."

"Okay." The man nodded. "Well, son, you can tell me. I'm certain that I am allowed to know in an eventually since you have been told my name and to follow my orders. This is an eventually," he spared a quick half glare at Stark.

"Fine," the youth said. "My name is Harry Potter. A couple of days ago an agent from MI6 showed up at my home telling me that I had shown up as they searched with facial recognition after a man called Loki."

"No kidding, you look scarily alike him," Stark muttered. "You could possibly be passed off as a clone."

"That wouldn't be enough to bring you in," Coulson stated certainly.

"No. I- well." He looked nervous, Thor noted, though he was hiding it well. One more trait shared with his brother. "I am. I mean." He cleared his throat. "Apparently Loki is my father."

Stark who had in the same moment put a few blueberries in his mouth spat them out. "What?" he croaked.

Now Thor decided that he better take over the situation. "Besides looking very much like him," he said, "I can see more things in you that remind me of him, of how things were in our youth and of happier times. It is good to meet you Harry. I am Thor, your uncle." He didn't doubt the validity of the claim. The boy before him was clearly the son of his brother, now that he knew of the connection there was no disputing it. He would get an explanation for how it had happened soon enough.

"Hi," his nephew said with a small smile, which made his heart clench in a strange fashion. If only Loki would look at him with the same openness and willingness for friendship.

They were not given the chance to extend further words as Director Fury arrived, accompanied by agent Hill. The Dark skinned man heaved a sigh as he looked upon the scene. "I suppose you are to blame for this, Stark?" he said.

The addressed man shrugged unrepentantly. "I don't think people working together should have secrets from each other."

"Secrets are kept for a reason. But I should have known that you were incapable of understanding that."

Stark smiled a vicious smile. "You are hiding so much more than this. And I will find out what I need to know to do my thing."

"And what is that?"

"I'm a hero these days. I hear our gig is saving the world, which includes saving it from greedy, reckless, unscrupulous government agencies."

"You have no proof."

"I'll have it soon enough. Anyway, my curiosity is sated for the time being. I'll just be heading back. Wouldn't want the cube to show up without me there."

Fury was not given a chance to protest before Stark had slid past him and ambled down a corridor and out of sight. "Who else knows?" the Director asked.

"Doctor Banner," Thor answered.

"The information is still contained then. Potter, what have you told them?"

"The truth," Harry answered, "the bare essentials of it."

"Thor, feel free to talk more with Mr. Potter. Coulson, Hill, with me." The Director left with the two agents leaving Thor with his new found nephew, a situation which suited him just fine.

"This is a difficult time in which we have met," he said, "but we shall make the best of it. You have my word."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN 9th November 2014:
> 
> A few new characters introduced. Harry and Thor have met. Next chapter will see some bonding.
> 
> I hope you enjoyed reading the chapter and will continue with me on this journey.
> 
> A thank you to njchrispatrick for taking a look at the chapter, and telling me that the direction it was taking was good, and to Hotaru Aburame for contributing a few small ideas.
> 
> [Last Edited August 2015]


	4. An Expanding World

* * *

 

"Permission to speak freely, sir?"

"Go ahead, Coulson." The trio of SHIELD operatives had moved to a secluded chamber where they were free to speak without being overheard. Outside the panorama windows of the Helicarrier the world was dark with night, but the lack of sunlight did not affect the importance of their mission. Spy organisations never sleep, because neither do their enemies.

"What was that?"Phil asked referring to the confrontation he'd just born witness to. He had thought that he had been informed about all the key elements of the current situation and finding out that this was not the case had him struggling to regain his equilibrium.

"That was the son of Loki and a human magic user."

"Excuse me? I am not certain I understand."

Hill cleared her throat. "We only learnt of his existence a few days ago. Once records of his parentage were discovered contact was made and Mr. Potter told us of the existence of magic here on Earth. Mr. Potter's mother was a human woman named Lily Potter. She and others like her have the ability to reshape the world around them, using a so far unidentified force most easily referred to as magic."

"All right." Phil tried to grip the information. He knew that his face showed nothing, but on the inside he was in turmoil. The balance he was trying to find was racketing beyond his grasp, he was freefalling from the impact of the implications. However, that was only for the time being. He had handled meeting Thor when the Asgardian crashed into the desert of New Mexico. He had learnt that humanity wasn't alone in the universe and he had come out on the other side, arguably a wiser man. He would be able to handle this too. "What do we know?"

"Not much yet," Fury answered gravely. "The information is still being compounded into a cohesive report for me to read. Witches and wizards - which is what they, believe it or not, call themselves - live hidden in most countries of the world. They have lived and evolved unnoticed by the majority of the world's population for centuries. They have extensive security measures to keep the information of their existence hidden. It's been like this since at least the early eighteenth century when the last enclave of Chinese magic users signed the International Statute of Secrecy. MI6 informed us as soon as they picked up the boy and then I had the pleasure of getting acquainted with some of the most hard-headed and secretive people in the country."

"That's why you disappeared even as we were preparing this operation," Phil stated. The Director had gone away for the majority of the day before, something which was odd considering the current crises and the dire need for leadership.

"Yes," Fury replied. "I met with the Head Auror of the United Magical American Confederation. I'll let you watch a recording of the meeting later; perhaps you'll be able to notice something we've missed."

"Yes, sir. What about the boy? What is the plan with him?"

Hill's mouth turned into a thin line as he asked this, and he knew that she didn't like the answer the Director was about to give him.

"The plan is to keep him safe, to learn about him and to shape him so that he doesn't become a threat later on. We don't need another entity with unknown powers to go unchecked and form questionable allegiances."

Phil could feel his mouth tightening into a reflection of Hill's. "And?" he prompted. "Why is he here if that is all? You should have taken him to the Academy or another facility if all you wanted was to train him and keep him safe."

"That's what I said," Hill muttered.

"Potter is here because if it comes to it, we will use the boy against Loki in whatever way necessary," Fury said.

Phil understood it, but didn't like it. "The boy is a minor and he isn't a US citizen, we don't have the right to control his life like that, to gamble with his life."

"His guardian agreed to send him and Potter came willingly."

"You know that there are things we're not entitled to do despite consent."

"Coulson," Fury said warningly. "Don't you think I know this?"

"Sorry, sir," he said, lowering his eyes.

"Though our main task is to be humanity's shield against anything that would threaten it, from without or without, we are an organization built on morals and ethics. I will not use Potter for anything untoward unless the situation becomes very, very dire. I will look for another solution as long as possible, but I have to plan for all eventualities. I know where to draw the line, and I know when the only acceptable choice is to overstep it."

"Of course, sir."

"Are we good then?"

"We're good." Phil said. He was as satisfied with the situation as he could expect to be. Fury had convinced him that his morals still held strong, while he was forced to make difficult decisions. They could only hope that things would turn better than the current outlook promised.

"Hill?"

"Yes, sir. We're good."

"Good. Hill, return to your duties. Coulson, I'll leave you to look at the recording from the meeting I mentioned. Now I need to go talk with Stark and try to convince the man to keep his mouth shut."

"Are you sure you don't want me to accompany you, sir?" Phil asked. "I've experience dealing with, Stark."

"I'll handle him."

Phil was left alone in the room after Fury started the recording he was to watch, seeing it on a large monitor that made everything much larger than it would have been in real life, allowing him to clearly see details you might have missed in person. The perspective of the recording was from normal height, leading Phil to the conclusion that the camera had been hidden somewhere on the Director's head, the eye patch was a possibility. Despite how small the camera must have been everything was crystal clear.

He saw a busy street, the yellow taxi cars passing by revealing it to be New York. A man came up to Fury. Nothing about him said that there was anything out of the ordinary about him. He was perhaps a bit too ordinary if anything.

" _Mr. Fury,"_  he said in an implacable standard American accent.  _"I'm Auror Reginald, I'll be escorting you to headquarters today if that is agreeable. The boss will meet you there."_

" _And how do I know that you are who you say you are?"_

" _The lightning bolt has struck from a clear sky. Wouldn't you say that's almost like magic?"_ the man said pleasantly. A security phrase if Phil had ever heard one. A method that was a bit dated, but fairly useful nevertheless.

" _I'd say it's exactly like magic,"_  Fury replied gruffly.

The man - or rather wizard as it might be - nodded. " _Follow me please."_

They walked in silence for several minutes, eventually arriving at a corner coffee shop. The café was dark and full of people wearing odd outfits; tall, pointy hats, long sweeping robes and cloaks in a multitude of colours, some with patterns that moved lazily around the hems.

They passed into a back room and went through a door with a sign that said  _staff only_. From there they came to a staircase leading down. A flight of stairs later they entered a corridor and then they were in a large hall, a reception area as far as Phil could tell. It was impressive and clearly magical.

One wall was lined with fireplaces through which people came and went in bursts of green flame. Paper planes sailed through the air and people dressed in robes hurried to and forth, some with stacks of books floating beside them in the air, others carrying broomsticks or cages with owls.

He catalogued everything he saw, remembering it and cross-referencing with his memories, concluding that he had encountered witches and wizards several times in his life, never knowing why they were strange.

The Director was led further on, Phil noted that he was lead in circles as they took many twists and turns through corridors, but there were a few things to be recognized every so often, despite him first being confused as the portrait images on the walls kept changing and it was when he saw a painting of an old wizard scratch his nose that he realized that they could move.

Eventually ended up in an office where an imposing man waited. He was tall, with dark hair and sharp brown eyes. He had a crooked nose and was dressed in a dark blue uniform. While it in some ways looked like the robes he had seen on other magical people it also resembled typically military clothes. Here the Director was left by his escort.

" _Nicholas Joseph Fury,"_ the man in the uniform said, looking at Fury with unblinking, hawk like eyes, _"muggle, head of the intelligence agency known as SHIELD, obliviated on no less than seven separate occasions over the last three years. A man who is a clear threat to the secrecy of the world I am sworn to protect."_

" _Cut the speeches, will you?_ " Fury said irritably from out of frame, apparently unimpressed, though Phil suspected that the indifference was a part of a power struggle between two men who both were adamant to come out on top and not yield to the other.

The wizard didn't show that he had heard the Director.  _"Memory spells are dangerous, but performed by a skilled wizard it is deemed safe to be used to erase as much as two weeks of recollections annually. That limit has not been passed for you yet and despite that I will not have your memory erased."_

" _Good for me. Why?"_

" _Because you will be of much better use if you know what you are up against. Keeping magic from the wider population is our priority; we are not concerned about the individual. Can I trust you to keep our secret and work towards the same aim as us, Director?"_

" _The existence of magic is not something I want made public."_

" _Than we shall be able to come to an arrangement."_

* * *

0.0.0

* * *

 

Thor looked much like in the photos Harry had been shown of him when agent Hill told him about the situation. Tall and muscled with shoulder length blond hair and short cut beard. He was wearing armour, with a chest plate and arm guards but no red cape flowing from his shoulders. All in all Harry felt a bit surprised at how human the man looked in person. He would be able to walk down the street and no one would ever know that he wasn't of this world.

It disappointed him slightly at the same time as it made him comfortable. If Thor, the Norse God of Thunder, could feel and look normal there was hope for Harry too. And all of that aside Harry could vaguely - in a way he has no words for - sense that the man was powerful - magically, spiritually, he didn't know what kind of power it was. But the sense of power didn't faze him, not any more than being around Hagrid who was physically imposing or Headmaster Dumbledore who was knowledgeable in magic and respected for his wisdom did. Thor's aura was nonthreatening. He instinctively knew that the power hidden in the being before him would not be used to harm him. Already he suspected that Thor would do what he could to protect him. It's a good feeling and he hoped that he could confirm it in time. Doing what felt natural Harry smiled up at the man, though the twist of his lips might have resulted in a smile that was a bit wan.

The situation had changed again, and though he felt as if he should be overwhelmed by everything that had happened over the law few days, his emotions seemed numbed. He'd only had a minor freak out at the revelation of his parentage and seeing his uncle, next to a man who could be none other than Tony Stark, a man who was important enough in the muggle world for Harry to know of him, hadn't affected him nearly as much as it probably should. Then again he had received various curveballs before. On the night when he had first met Sirius he had in less than an hour gone from feeling enough hate and anger to be capable of killing the man, to being filled with strong enough happiness that he'd been able to conjure a Patronus with enough potency to repel a host of several hundred Dementors. Dealing with swift shifts was actually not a novelty for Harry.

However he had not expected to come face to face with Thor so soon. He would have thought it more likely to sooner meet his father. Loki appearing on earth was after all the catalyst of current events and when he had been briefed SHIELD had informed him that as far as they were aware Thor had returned to Asgard after his short sojourn on earth and he was unlikely to return any time soon. That last part had obviously been a miscalculation on SHIELD's part, which led to Harry's first question.

"SHIELD said that you were in Asgard, how come you returned to earth?"

The tall blond grimaced slightly. "How much do you know about me or-," he hesitated, "or about your father?"

Harry shrugged inelegantly. "About as much as you know about me, that is saying; not a lot. I've been told a little bit about what happened when you were on Earth last year and SHIELD said that Loki stole something from them and that they want it back. Besides that, all I have had to go on is what is written down in old myths."

"That is indeed lacking," Thor said seriously. "A friend I made when I was last on Midgard showed me how my people and I appear in your legends. Not much of it could be called accurate, not even names all of the time."

"So I don't have any siblings? Harry asked.

The man chuckled, it was a rumbling sound, warm and reverberating. "Not any of which I am aware," was the reply.

"Oh. One thing to cross off the list I suppose." Harry felt vaguely disappointed again. Though most of Loki's children were described to be monsters in the retelling of legends in the Poetic Edda, Harry wouldn't have minded having brothers or sisters. It would have taken some pressure off, made him less special. Now he was confirmed as one of a kind.

"I do not have any children either. Contrary to your legends, we Aesir are careful about not dishonouring our partners by having children in relationships outside unions of husband and wife."

"How come I exist then?" Harry asked and it did not make him any happier when Thor frowned. "My mother was married to another man, unless he went about masquerading as James Potter he wasn't married to her."

"This is not something I have an answer for. I can only tell you that Loki is a skilled shape shifter and that he would have been able to pull of such a feat, but I cannot recall that he was missing for any length of time during these past years. It is something we will have to ask your father."

"That won't happen any time soon then," Harry said despondently.

"Why would you say that?"

"Well, I suppose he's in hiding or something... trying to stay away from SHIELD and doing whatever he had planned when he stole... whatever it was he stole."

"They have not told you. I see. Loki is here."

"What?"

"He is held prisoner on this vessel. I joined SHIELD as they transported my brother here."

Harry's heart began to beat faster. His father was on board the Helicarrier and nobody had told him. He felt some resentment as he understood that this must be the secret they had kept from him. Yet, what did it matter? His father was close by. He could talk to him, ask him everything he wanted to know.

"Can I see him?" he asked, looking at Thor with hope.

"I am not certain that is advisable." The man frowned. "My brief interaction with my brother has me worried about his current state of mind. When last I met him he had just learnt something troubling about himself and it changed him. I cannot tell how he would react if he was to meet you. I think it is best that you wait to meet him and we would have to discuss it with the people of SHIELD."

"I see," Harry said disappointedly. "It's just... I have so many questions for him about how he knew my mother and what shall become of me now. If he wants anything to do with me, if he knew I existed and…" he sighed. "I had hoped to speak with him at some point, hearing that he is here… I suppose it made me get my hopes up."

Thor went over to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. It felt comforting, something he hadn't been expecting. He wasn't good with physical contact, it usually made him feel awkward. Thor's touch felt right. "You will get a chance to speak with him. Once this situation is dealt with there will be time for answers, time for you to get to know your father. I am sure he will want to know you, no matter what state of mind he is in I know that he would treasure you as his blood, as his son. He can be rather possessive. For now I will do my best to answer your questions."

Harry nodded. The reassurance felt good, as good as the warm hand on his shoulder. He hoped Thor's words were true, that Loki would want to know him. He shouldn't get his hopes up, but it was difficult to resist. "Okay, so first. Are you gods?"

Thor laughed. "No, we are not. We are different to humans on earth and it happens that we call humans mortals, but that is only because we live for a much longer time. Most Asgardians live to be over five thousand years old, some become far older than that. Our currently oldest citizen will soon have seen her eight thousand year, I believe."

"Merlin," Harry said, "that's, that's really old."

"To you I assume it would seem so, when everyone you know expect the same time span the years cease to have the same meaning."

"Can I ask how old you are?"

To his relief Thor didn't take offence, he only smiled. He seemed to smile a lot. It made him seem less threatening than his large stature would imply, which was a good thing as far as Harry was concerned. "We count years slightly differently from you as Asgard's days are slightly longer and a turn around our star is slightly shorter. When I first visited earth in my youth people said that it was the nine hundreds."

"You're over a thousand years old," the wizard said making large eyes.

"Yes, but I'm still considered young. Remember Asgardian life-expectancy, I've lived only a fifth of my lifespan, if you equal that with a human lifespan it might not seem so old anymore."

Harry calculated it and found that Thor would be no more than twenty counted in such terms, but it was still mind boggling that any being could get so old. "How can your people get so old?" he asked.

"How can  _our people_  get so old," Thor corrected him gently. "You will most probably grow to become just as old."

"Really?"

"Aye. You will likely have inherited everything from your father that can strengthen you. While I do not know of any half Midgardian children, I do know about children from unions with other shorter-lived races. They have all inherited the lifespan of their longer lived parent as well as their strength, intelligence or affinity for magic."

"I'll live to be several thousand years old?" The thought did not sight right with Harry. He did not desire such a long life. All he'd ever wanted was normalcy, though he had realized that he would never have it once he learnt that he was a wizard he had come to accept a new normal, the normal of the wizarding world and he had hoped to perhaps fit into it someday. Now he would have to accept another set of normal, the normal of powerful extraterrestrial beings. It would take some time to accept.

"Most probably," Thor said with a nod. "To go back to your original question about how we are able to become so old, it has to do with how our bodies are constructed, I am no scholar or healer and couldn't properly explain it, but I know that our bodies are denser than the bodies of humans and more durable, I suspect this has something to do with our slower aging."

"Right," Harry said with a curt nod, satisfied with the reply. Even if Thor had been able to describe it to him in scientific terms he wouldn't have understood it. Magical educations didn't exactly provide fundamental knowledge in physics, chemistry and biology. Perhaps wizards had their own explanations for how the world worked, but that wasn't something that was taught either, in his experience. If it had been, Hermione would have made a mention of it by now.

"The density of our muscles and bones is what make us more durable and also stronger than humans, this is something that happens first when we reach as certain point in aging, and I wouldn't be surprised if you experience great increase in your appetite and weight in the years to come."

"Oh?" This was interesting, this concretely affected him, not that the other things didn't, but it was closer in time, making it more relevant.

"How old are you Harry?"

"Eh, I'll be fifteen in about a month."

Thor nodded. "It might take a year or two before you notice anything out of the ordinary then. It is in the later part of the puberty, once you have reached your full height, that your body will begin to grow denser, and your strength and endurance increase profoundly. Once that happens you will need to eat a lot of meat. I remember that I was always hungry during those years, though my mother would surely say that I never lost my appetite." He smiled abashedly. "My brother ate even more than I during those years. Something people find hard to believe now."

"Oh," Harry said again. "Will you tell me about him? How it was to grow up together?"

"It would be my pleasure."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN 2nd March 2015
> 
> This took me far longer than I had counted on. Sorry about that. The next chapter should be along shortly, I hope, it's half done and has been that way for months, it is also in the next chapter that Loki enters the stage and things get really interesting. The first half of this chapter is there as a beginning of an explanation of what's going on as SHIELD learns about magic and the reception this has. There will be more cooperation between the magical world and SHIELD as the story goes on.
> 
> Thanks to those of you who have waited patiently, and welcome all new readers, I hope you enjoyed the chapter, let me know what you thought.
> 
> If you want to follow how my progress with coming chapter is faring you can see it in a document that's linked to on my profile page under the STORIES heading
> 
> [Last edited August 2015]


	5. Parental Figures

"I enjoyed hearing about that," Harry said when Thor finished a story about him and Loki exploring a system of tunnels underneath parts of the city of Asgard and finding a treasure that they had thought was gold. It turned out to be bronzed iron that someone, a long time ago, had tried to pass off as gold and then hid to escape prosecution.

They had finished off a light meal which Harry had prepared in the small kitchen area of his room some time earlier. His room really did hold everything he'd need to get through a day on his own. The people in charge weren't kidding around when they said that he was to remain hidden. Even going to the crew's dining room would have been too much. Harry was only glad that they hadn't isolated him completely, with Hill hanging around most of the time, and now this new development with Thor.

His uncle had been talking about his childhood for some time, making sure that Harry got his fill of fantastical stories that made the magic of Hogwarts seem dull. But more than the splendour of Asgard and the technology mixed with magic that penetrated every part of their society, Harry had mainly got a feel for who the two Asgardian princes were. It seemed to him like his father and uncle were very close. There were however a tone of melancholy to Thor's voice that made Harry suspect that something had changed. Probably recently.

"It was a good adventure for a pair of boys," Thor agreed to Harry's statement.

"But you're not boys anymore," Harry said. While reminiscing about the past was good, what he needed to know was what had happened to bring Loki to Earth. What had changed? Thor had alluded to a falling out. "What happened? What made Loki leave Asgard?"

Thor leaned forward, putting his elbows on the table. He looked Harry in the eyes, regarding him silently for a moment. "I suppose you deserve to know. I would prefer that you hear about the events from Loki so that you can understand what he was going through as he can best explain it, but I'll do my best to not be biased. And you need to know about several things, it would not do for you to stumble blindly because things are the way they are. The most important thing you need to know is a matter I did not want to bring up previously. You might have noted that I was very vague when I spoke about your heritage."

"Yes." Thinking back Harry realized that it was true, he hadn't thought of it then as there was so much else to take in, but it was true that Thor had been evasive. "Whatever it is I can take it," he proclaimed steadily. "It can't be any worse than what I've already had to deal with these past days. Not long ago I didn't know there was life away from earth."

The man on the other side of the table nodded. "You are strong to accept it all. It grieves me to add more to your burden, alas it has to be done." He paused again, still watching Harry with an intensity in his eyes that made the young wizard's stomach turn into a knot, but he kept his face impassive to show that he was ready, he could take it. "Your father and I are not brothers by blood."

Harry stayed silent, simply taking it in, allowing the words to keep washing over him.

"Long ago Asgard was at war with Jotunheim, one of the nine realms that exist within the World Tree. Jotunheim is the home of the Jotuns. They are beings of equal strength to Asgardians, they live as long as us, and are strong in magic, showing special prowess with illusions. They have an affinity for ice and can resist extreme cold. They are normally taller than humans or Asgardians, standing at eight to ten feet."

"Normally?" Harry pressed when Thor fell silent. He knew where this was going, but he wanted to hear Thor say it.

"Loki is a Jotun by birth, and so are you from his side."

There was another loaded silence, where Thor looked at him in a strange way, as if he had expected him to scream and rage about his changed racial identity. It was all the same to Harry. He'd thought that he was human. Asgardian. Jotun. It was just names to him. As time dragged on he could feel the static in the air increasing and he decided that he had to speak up. "Thanks for letting me know."

"You do not sound upset," the Thunder god said in a light, surprised tone and the oppressive feeling in the air abated.

"Should I be?"

"Loki was when he learned the truth, something which our father had kept secret, never intending to reveal it, as far as I can tell. It changed everything for Loki. He saw it as an explanation for the favouritism our father showed me. Frost Giants-"

Harry interrupted him. "Frost Giants?"

"Forgive me, I've said Jotuns as Frost Giants is a derogatory term we use for our long time enemies, and that was also part of the problem. We may not have been in war with Jotunheim for several hundred years, but the animosity remains and the stories Loki and I grew up hearing, portrayed them as monsters. Learning that he was one of them must have been difficult. He lost sight of what was important. That he's part of our family, a valued member of Asgard's royal house, not a representation of an ill formed, biased image of an entire race."

"Loki's reaction is why you didn't want to tell me, why you were looking at me strangely," Harry stated, "you were afraid that I would react the same way."

"Yes. It might be irrational. You wouldn't react the same with a completely different background, but I admit that it was the reason for my avoidance earlier."

"I understand."

"Being a Jotun does not change anything about who you are as a person. You are still a boy named Harry, no matter your heritage and as long as you'll have me, I'll try to be a good uncle."

The words meant more to Harry than he would ever be able to accept. He didn't share any blood with Thor, yet the man was accepting him. Knowing that his uncle would stand by him was as good as or better than learning that Sirius was innocent and wanted to take care of him. Thor was the only person he knew who would still be there in a hundred years and the infinity beyond. To have someone to ground him if all else went wrong, provided a safety net and a grounding stone Harry hadn't known he lacked. The realisation made everything slam down at last.

"Thank you," he said in a voice that might have been a bit horse. "Don't take this the wrong way please." Thor nodded, blond hair bobbing with the movement. "I would like to be alone for a bit. It's all a bit much and…"

"As you wish. If you wish to speak to me or need me for anything else I am sure you'll be able to find me. Whatever it is I'm at your disposal."

"Thanks," Harry said again.

As Thor left Harry moved to his bed, moved so that he was seated against the wall, pulled a pillow up into his lap and allowed himself to cry. It wasn't that he was sad. It was just too much now and he had read somewhere that the chemicals and hormones or whatever that made you feel stressed and depressed could be released through tears, making it cathartic in a literal, scientific sense. Whether it worked or not, it was something he felt willing to try.

He would outlive everyone he'd ever known.  _Everything_ he'd ever known. How long could even a building or a country last? A few hundred years; sure. A couple of thousand; with a bit of luck. Longer than that? Who knew? Everything was changing so fast, too fast. It had only been a matter of time before it all came crashing down. At least he could deal on his own terms, without an audience to make him feel even more awkward.

He wished that he'd brought Hedwig along. It would have been good to send a letter to Ron or Hermione or Sirius. Any of them. The only problem was that it wouldn't be safe so he wouldn't have been able to write anything substantial either way. But he wanted to speak with them so bad. It would help, he was sure. He tried to imagine what they would say.

" _You're a god, mate? Wicked. Now you'll be able to really put Malfoy in his place... slimy git."_  Ron

" _Don't worry so much about it, Harry. We'll be alive for many years to come. When it's our time at last, you'll be prepared, you'll have known that it would come. It will hurt, but you'll have made new friends who can help you get through. This isn't an end. It's a beginning. Think about how much you can learn!"_  Hermione.

" _It doesn't matter who you are, whose biological son you are. James and Lily loved you. You are my godson and I love you too."_  Sirius.

Harry smiled imagining it and dried his tears already feeling better. Yeah, it was a mess, but he would deal and come out stronger for it.

* * *

0.0.0

* * *

Despite Fury's best efforts, the knowledge of Harry's existence had spread until all the present members of the Avengers Initiative knew about him. It had not been spread by Tony Stark, the way he had anticipated, but by Thor, who as too proud and happy to have learned that he had a nephew to keep quiet about it.

The Director had been forced to contend with criticism from the group. The two most outspoken on the matter had been the Black Widow and Captain America, both of whom disliked the idea of involving minors in warfare, something they had previously experienced from the organisations they had come to dedicate their lives fighting against. Natasha's comment of "have you started your own program for boys now? I thought I had left that kind of bullshit behind when I joined SHIELD," when his intentions regarding Potter had been explained was particularly grating.

Tony Stark had taken a more passive aggressive route, Stark continued to hack into their systems to try and find what else they might be hiding. He had soon stumbled over the project where they evaluated the possibility to weaponize the power of the Tesseract, something which hadn't been popular with the team, resulting in a screaming match, which had only let up when the results from the scan for gamma radiation had come back, giving them a location.

The team had gone into action, travelling to an area with abandoned warehouses in rural Pennsylvania. There the team had encountered a bunch of people influenced by Loki's staff, some of them known SHIELD agents, but there had been no signs of the Tesseract, nor had they seen Clint Barton or Erik Selvig.

Loki in his cage appeared completely unconcerned about everything. It was like Banner had pointed out during the argument; Loki seemed to be the only one who truly wished to be on the Helicarrier. Why he wanted to stay locked up was anyone's guess and while they had sent in the Black Widow to talk to him, they had discovered nothing. He had taunted her and talked about a beast. They had interpreted it as him talking about the Hulk, but two days later nothing had changed. The bastard was just sitting in the cage, smirking at anyone who came near, except for Thor who he stonewalled, much to the blond man's frustration.

It was beginning to get frustrating over all. The people he had put together on the team were all very different and Fury had not expected them to get along until a dire situation forced them to trust each other, to see that they had good qualities. They were beginning to unite because of Harry, making him secretly smug that he had brought the boy to the Helicarrier. It might not have been the purpose he had first envisioned for the son of Loki, but it was working well and it allowed him to stay safely within the realm of what was morally correct, at least for the time being.

He only needed to be patient. The team was coming together and would be ready to fight as one should the need arise and the world's top scientist on gamma radiation with the assistance of another genius were working tirelessly on finding the true location of the Tesseract. All that remained was to wait and plan for when things unavoidably took a turn for the worse.

* * *

0.0.0

* * *

Harry opened the door and stepped into the hangar where the cage holding Loki was. He didn't know if he had remained unseen on his way there even with the invisibility cloak covering him, but he did know that once he stepped inside and showed himself to Loki, his whereabouts wouldn't remain secret for long. It didn't matter. He had to do this. He had to speak with the man who supposedly was his father. He needed to understand. What he had learnt since he got to start interacting with the group of Superheroes concerned him. It had raised more questions than it had provided answers and he couldn't allow it to continue like that any longer. The situation was at a stalemate and something had to give.

He approached the glass cage, seeing the man inside with his own eyes for the first time. As he had seen through the video feeds he was dressed in black leather with adornments in golden metal and with forest green accents. Loki looked completely unconcerned and unchanged by his several days long imprisonment. Thor had explained that while they could complain with the best unless provided with plenty of food and drink, they could go long times without and sustain themselves on small rations.

Harry looked at the man's black hair, slicked back yet messy at the ends, it was familiar. As were the narrow face, thin lips and the shape of the eyebrows, they were all features mirrored in his own face. He could easily believe that they were related, but he didn't know if he wanted it to be so. Not after what he had learnt so far. But what he'd heard might be biased. Tony, Natasha and Steve didn't actually have any reason to like the man and Thor seemed to be growing increasingly conflicted.

He took a small breath to steel himself and pulled off the cloak, the silky fabric falling away from his head like water.

"What is this?" Loki said rising to his feet, no surprise at Harry's sudden appearance noticeable in his expression. His voice was smooth, but filled with derision, reminding Harry of Snape, it wasn't a pleasant comparison. "They would send a child to speak with me?"

"Nobody sent me," Harry responded, coming to stand in front of the man so that only glass and a few paces separated them. Loki was taller than him and he had to tilt his head up to properly look at him now that they were this close. "They will likely see that I am here soon and come to drag me away."

"Is that so?" The god raised a single, dark eyebrow. "Tell me, child; why would you come to see me if you were not ordered?"

"I wanted to talk to you before I decide." Harry let the sentence hang unfinished, wishing for Loki to prompt a full answer out of him.

"Decide on what?"

"If I shall do as I know they'll eventually ask and fight against you."

Loki laughed, it was a startled sound, which strangely made him appear more human. "They want  _you_  to fight me?"

Harry could well understand his amusement. It was stupid to imagine him fighting against this man. This  _god._ He had survived several encounters Voldemort, that was true, but from what he had come to understand Loki's abilities far outmatched any wizard's, dark lord or not. He had seen a bit about what Thor was capable of and he wouldn't stand a prayer against his uncle.

"Why haven't you escaped yet?" he asked, changing the line of questioning. "You could easily transport yourself from this cell."

Loki smirked at him, placing a hand against the glass, making the barrier more apparent. "What makes you say that?"

"If a wizard can, I think you could as well."

"Wizards?" The man's eyes narrowed calculatingly.

"Yes."

"That was an invisibility cloak you were hidden under."

Harry nodded.

"Have the wizards gotten involved?"

"No. Not yet. At least I don't think they've provided any more than some basic information to SHIELD." After stating this Harry realized that he might have said too much. Loki might have been more cautious if he knew that he faced magical resistance. Knowing that the wizards hadn't joined SHIELD against him might give him confidence. But it was too late now.

"Who are you?" Loki demanded softly.

"Harry," he replied, and nervous excitement began to bubble within him. They were nearing the moment of truth. Best keep Loki interested. He couldn't say too much again. Withholding information would intrigue him. It had to be a game. "Though I'm led to believe that my true name is another."

Loki didn't take the bait. "Why would you hesitate about fighting me? I would have thought that they would have presented me as a monster, someone who has to be stopped by any means necessary."

He tried again. "I wanted to give you the benefit of doubt because I am also led to believe that you knew my mother."

"Harry!" The agents had arrived, with Executive Commander Hill at the front of the group, calling his name.

"Agent Hill," he responded dejectedly, turning away from his father to face her disapproving gaze. It seemed like his time was up already, and he hadn't had the time to get a single answer, he'd only inadvertently given an enemy information. It was a complete failure and now he was in for a dressing down. The woman placed a firm hand on his shoulder and began to lead him away. He could have struggled, but he knew it would be of no use, so he went along with her.

"What is your mother's name?" Loki asked.

Looking at him over his shoulder Harry answered. "Her name was Lily."

The next thing Harry knew he was transported from one place to another by powerful, smooth magic. He let out a shocked yelp and stumbled as solid ground once more placed itself beneath his feet, only to have two hands gently grab his shoulders and steady him. He looked up and saw Loki. He had been brought inside the cage. It proved that he had been right in his suspicions that Loki was able to transport out of the cage at will.

"Lily?" Loki asked, peering intensely at him with green-blue eyes.

"Yes," Harry breathed. "My mother's name was Lily."

"Was?"

Harry nodded numbly and noticed a shift of the man's face that was gone as soon as it had appeared.

"What did she look like?"

"She had deep red hair and green eyes, like mine."

The man made a show of lifting one of his hands, holding it up so that both of them could see it. As they watched the skin turned from a pale skin colour to deep-blue. The colour spread slowly from the fingertips up to the wrist, raised patterns in swirls lying on the back of the hand. They were beautiful in an exotic and dangerous fashion, like the pattern on the back of a poisonous snake.

"Loki!" Harry and Loki both turned to the side to see Thor striding to the edge of the glass cage, Mjolnir in his hand, Steve and Natasha were at his heels. "I beseech you, brother! Do not harm him!"

"Harm him?" Loki chuckled darkly, white teeth flashing. "Either this is a ploy where you try to make a fool of me, if so there is no need for me to care if he is hurt," he paused, cocking his head slightly. "Orthis is actually what I am being led to believe and my touch will do him no harm."

He placed his hand lightly on Harry's face. The skin touching him was dry, and the pressure was soft, but other than that there was nothing noteworthy about it. Indeed, as far as Harry was concerned nothing happened. When he looked at the people outside the cage and up at Loki he could tell that there was more to it though, more than he could sense. Something had happened to make them all look so upset.

"You  _are_  mine," Loki said softly, intently, his expression unreadable, however his eyes had gained an intense sparkle that could only be contributed to magic sparked by emotion. Harry found a faint reflection of himself in the glass of the cage. From where Loki's blue hand touched him, the cerulean colour had spread over half of his face, covering one eye which has bleed red. He had known that there was more to him than met the eye as Thor had told him that Loki and in turn he, weren't Asgardian, but he hadn't known if he could take on a different form. Loki's touch had brought out their shared heritage, displaying their connection for all to see.

"This changes everything," Loki continued in the same soft voice.

"Brother," Thor said, his voice deeper than usual, and the addressed man turned to face the people standing outside the cage.

"I have very much enjoyed your hospitality," he said mockingly, addressing the room at large, upper lip curling. He continued in the same tone, a mix of acerbic contempt and impeccable politeness. "I find however, that I have been overstaying my welcome, which was never my intention. I would not want to impose my presses on you anymore. You have given me an invaluable gift and I plan to use it fully. You have my deepest gratitude."

As Loki spoke Harry could see Director Fury moving towards a control panel. He pressed a button and what followed was a roar as air rushed around the cage. The hull opened up beneath them; next the Director flipped up a glass pane and allowed his hand to hover over a large, red button. Harry didn't know what it did, but he could guess and it wasn't any good.

"Let the boy go, or the cage goes," the man said, tone void of any amusement.

Loki removed his hand from Harry's cheek where it had stayed and walked up to the glass, placing his hands calmly behind his back. Harry could not help but be impressed. This man was in full control and likely he had been so all along, allowing himself to be captured, allowing them to keep him imprisoned, toying with them. Now he was allowing everyone to see that he was in charge of the situation.

"This is with what you threaten me?" the Trickster said in a drawl and snorted. "You can do nothing that I fear. Do dispose of the cage, I challenge you. It would be no skin off my back. If you proceed you will have nowhere to put the beast once it takes over the man, a situation that  _you_  fear." He glanced up at one of the cameras, likely knowing that Bruce would be watching, it made Harry feel a bit bad for the soft spoken scientist. "And if you do drop this cage you will not have a safe place for either the monster or me. I call your bluff, Fury. Would you have an innocent – a child – share my fate?"

Harry held his breath as Fury pressed his lips tightly together, his mouth forming a straight, stern line. The two opponents shared in a staring contest. For a moment Harry thought that Fury would press the button, but then he averted his gaze and removed his hand from its threatening position. The god had come winning out of the struggle of wills.

Loki backed to the middle of the cage again. "As I thought," he said with a broad smirk, spreading his hands to the sides. "I will see you all again soon." He reached out, touched Harry's shoulder and the world shifted around them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN 9th March 2015
> 
> Did you like it? Please tell me you liked it…
> 
> Thank you all for reading!
> 
> [Last edited August 2015]


	6. Changing Plans

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> While I don't normally bother you with author's notes at the beginning of chapters I have to this time, because I need to extend a huge thank you for the response on the last chapter. It went over and beyond all my expectations. Thank you. I hope you'll enjoy this chapter as much as the last one. Happy reading!

For the duration of a moment that lasted no longer than the space between one heartbeat and the next, but felt infinitely longer, Harry was pulled forcibly through an indeterminate substance, guided by the hand that rested firmly on his shoulder. As far as he could tell, everything was completely dark and quiet, though not for the lack of sound and light. It was as if his senses had been cut off, leaving him bereft and lost. Yet at the back of his mind a vague notion of something more was stirring, as if he had an additional sense which was slumbering for now, but once awake would be able to perceive and control the  _something_ that surrounded him.

Harry thought they were travelling, though only the feeling of a pull from where Loki resided beside him provided that impression. The young wizard compared the sensation to the tug of a Portkey, to the inability to let go of the enchanted object until you arrived at your set destination. Apart from the pull there was nothing similar about the two experiences. This mood of transportation – if that was what it was – was far smoother than any form of magical transportation he'd used previously. There was no jarring sensation, no explosions of colour or shifts in gravity to induce nausea. Only the darkness and the near unperceivable itch in the back of his mind whispering about something more.

As they landed smoothly Harry was greeted with more darkness, though not of the same encompassing sort as during the passage. It was slightly chilly and the air smelled dank, with a hint of rusting metal. They were no longer aboard the Helicarrier. At the confirmation of his suspicion that they had travelled, his heart plummeted somewhat. This was potentially really bad. Or really good.

From the moment when Loki called out to him, as he was being led away by agent Hill, things had progressed in a way he had not anticipated. He had thought that it would end there, that all interaction with Loki would be put on hold as SHIELD interrupted, but he had been wrong. The situation had escalated quickly after he was transported inside the cage.

He should have acted then, should have made a move before Loki had a chance to do so first. But he had not and he had several reasons for his rather uncharacteristic passivity. It hadn't seemed as if Loki wished him any harm. Nothing the man had done had been aggressive, he'd only talked. He'd been sneering and derisive, but he'd not tried to hurt anyone. Harry had not truly felt the need to stop him. He had simply seen a chance to connect with the man he had learnt was his father. He didn't wish to do anything to create a rift between them before they had even spent five full minutes in each other's company. Besides, there weren't any actions he could have taken to improve the situation.

He didn't know how to apparate, he hadn't been able to get back outside of the cage to once more level the playing field and restore the power balance between the two opposing factions. If he'd tried to use physical force he would have failed miserably, more likely to injure himself than his father on account of the elder's denser body, armour and durability. Using magic could have been one feasible alternative, but there had been no guarantee that his spells would have had any effect. He'd trained a little bit with Thor the other day and his uncle had just shrugged off his stunners as if they were mere beams of coloured light without any magical energy hidden within. His disarming charms had likewise been completely ineffective. The only result had been a twitch from the hammer held in his uncle's hand followed by a small zap of lightning directed at Harry as if in reprimand. If he had tried some other spell it was possible that he could have produced some effect, but he was unwilling to risk it. The most he could hope to achieve was a short moment where Loki was taken by surprise and that would do him little good. As far as he had deduced, any harmful magic he managed to use against him would only serve to anger the man and that wasn't something he had desired to do. If the other present people had used the short moment of distraction to act, what would have followed would likely have been all out fighting where people would have gotten hurt, an outcome that was even less desirable.

Even knowing that his decision to seek out Loki despite SHIELD's wishes had been based on emotions as much as logic and the outcome had been completely different than anticipated, Harry couldn't bring himself to regret it. He had keenly wanted to speak with his father and if SHIELD wouldn't make it happen, he had to take the first step himself. He knew that the time he would have would be short, but that wasn't the point. He had hoped that by forcing the issue the leaders of SHIELD wouldn't remain adamant about keeping him away from Loki. He had known that there was a good possibility that nothing would change, but he had decided that the mere chance was worth all the risks. Now it was very likely that he would get his chance to speak with Loki, to ask him all the questions that had been building in his mind. While it hadn't happened in the best possible way, Harry still believed that the outcome could be turned for the best.

The dim lighting of the room in which they had landed meant that Harry to wait for a few moments to observe his surroundings as his eyes adjusted. His vision hardly lived up to the supreme eyesight Thor expressed having, as it was worse than the eyesight of a majority of the human population, resulting in his need to use glasses. His uncle had said that there was a good chance that his vision would improve in the years to come when his body evolved to the shape of an adult supreme being, though he would never enjoy the same sharp vision as most Asgardians. Harry could live with that, the prospect of his eyesight improving at all was more than he could have hoped for, and if he would see well enough that he was able to put away his glasses, it was good enough for him.

He looked around quickly seeing that they had appeared in a long, narrow hallway. The walls were of concrete, the surface grey and rough. drops of water trickled down along the walls, pooling slightly on the floor. Tubes and power cords ran unhidden along the ceiling, intersected with the occasional dim, greenish light source, creating sinister shadows that reflected on the drenched ground. Harry wondered why he would be taken to such a place, it didn't seem particularly hospitable.

"I do hope that the sudden change of scenery does not bother you," Loki said, immediately capturing Harry's attention.

"No," he said in reply. "It's fine."

"Good. We were very rudely interrupted in our conversation, something I do not find acceptable. It is galling when people do not have the courtesy to be silent while their betters talk."

Harry frowned at those words. That attitude did not sit right with him. However Loki lightly squeezed his shoulder with the hand that still rested there and gave him a small smile which appeared sincere and he let the issue go.

"Here no one will interrupt us. We will have all the time we wish to speak. However as we have already had our conversation disturbed I think that prolonging the pause slightly will do us no harm. With our departure my plans must change and I need to see to a few matters."

Harry felt that he desperately didn't want to show any weakness in front of this man, he didn't seem to be very forgiving of them, so though he wanted to ask where they were he kept silent, it wasn't a question that could be classified as pressing. He shook his head and got a nod back.

"Wait here, I'll only be a minute." Loki disappeared and Harry was left standing alone in the dark.

* * *

0.0.0

* * *

Thor wanted to hit something, but he held himself back as damaging SHIELD property would solve nothing. Loki was gone and so was Harry. He didn't believe his brother would hurt the boy, yet he worried about the fourteen year old. He worried about Loki too. He was not well. And he worried about Midgard. He couldn't tell what would happen next, what his brother had planned and how Harry had changed them.

"Did you know he could do that?" Fury demanded harshly, invading his personal space. The Director did not look pleased.

"No," Thor answered honestly, though it might have come off as defensive. "I did not. It not sorcery of a kind I've seen before. I know my brother has his ways to move between Realms, but moving within them was not something of which I knew him capable."

"Apparently he is."

"Apparently so."

"Will he hurt Harry?" Steve Rogers asked.

"I do not believe that my brother will hurt him. Not intentionally."

The Captain's mouth pulled tight. "But unintentionally."

"It is possible. I cannot answer for Loki anymore, he is changed, brittle with sharps edges I never knew. Even though I do not think any ill will befall Harry, we must find my nephew."

"We will," Fury said. "If we find him, we find the Tesseract and Loki."

* * *

0.0.0

* * *

Bruce and Tony had hung back as the rest gathered in the hangar where Harry had stupidly gone to confront Loki. They'd watched and listened unable to interact. They knew that they wouldn't have been of much help. They knew Loki wanted to agitate Bruce to become the Hulk, something the quiet man wanted no part of and without his suit Tony wouldn't be much use in a fight. Without it he'd only let his mouth run away with him, more likely to start a fight than stop one. Now they were of use again, getting back to the tracking of the Tesseract.

"He forgot his glow stick," Tony muttered, looking at the sceptre and the blue glowing gem that was sitting in it as he tried to look at the algorithms they had been using so far, searching for a way to improve them as the results they'd gotten so far had been far from satisfactory.

"I did not forget. And I did say I'd see you soon."

"Hey!" Tony called in surprise. "How did you get in here?"

Loki was standing by the sceptre, having appeared without a sound or any other sign. "No time to talk, I have a son to get back to," the Asgardian replied, picking up the weapon. Tony lunged after him, but fell through thin air. Loki was already gone.

Bruce gave him a hand up from the ground. "If he keeps doing that, I'll get very vexed," Tony muttered agitatedly. He picked up his phone and spoke into it. "Jarvis!"

"Yes, sir?"

"Where is he?"

"He appeared briefly in young Harry's rooms, but appears to be gone now."

Tony drew in a deep breath, as if getting ready to shout profanities, but he let it out again. "No need to suit up then. Fine. Just get me a reading on his movements."

"Right away, sir."

"What are you planning?" Bruce asked.

"I'll find out how he's doing that teleport thing, magic be damned. I'll go Gandalf on his ass and make sure that he  _cannot pass_  again."

* * *

0.0.0

* * *

Loki returned as Harry was beginning to wonder if he had been abandoned there in the eerie, dark corridor. In one hand he held the weapon he'd seen in the room where Bruce and Tony did most of their work, in the other he carried Harry's trunk, balancing it if as it weighed nothing.

"We both left something behind, things we wanted."

"Thanks," Harry wagered to say, stumped at how else to react. Bringing his possessions made Loki seem like a proper dad, getting his sceptre on the other hand, did not.

"It was no trouble. Shall we?"

Harry nodded and began following Loki down the corridor. They took a turn to the left, following the corridor and ended up in a larger space where a lot of people were moving around. Far more people than Harry would have imagined.

"Sir!" A man who Harry instantly recognized approached them. Short cut blond hair, a short face with a square chin and a round nose. Muscular arms. Silent confidence.

"Barton," Loki acknowledging him.

Harry swallowed. This was one of the men who had worked for SHIELD, one of those allegedly under Loki's control and judging by the translucent blue film covering Barton's eyes it was true. He wasn't there of his own free will. Seeing it first hand and understanding what was at work left a bad taste in Harry's mouth. He wanted to give his father a chance. He wanted him to be a good guy, but everything was pointing towards the opposite. He would not give up hope quite yet. There could be extenuating circumstances, Loki could be operating on the basis that the end justified the means. That didn't make mind control right. It didn't excuse murder. Harry didn't believe in the end justifying the means. He could not agree with it, but he could perhaps understand. He could still get answers. It wasn't as if he was getting away now.

"We didn't expect you back," the mind-controlled man continued. "I was about to launch the attack as ordered, it's good you decided to arrive before we took off, while the fight might have been entertaining I dislike the thought of wasting resources."

"Quite right," Loki said, walking towards the man, beckoning Harry to come along, moving through the crowd of people. Though the conflicted feelings Harry had about his father were continuing to grow he followed.

"Has anything worthy of my attention come to pass in my absence?" Loki asked as they kept walking.

"Nothing unexpected. I've located a couple of dozen new recruits, all willing to do anything to get the job done as long as the payment keeps coming, and some willing to do even more for a chance to get one over SHIELD. Two of our decoys were discovered, a few casualties were sustained on both sides during the confrontations, but no one valuable was lost on either side. Selvig's been making progress with his calculations for the portal, he says that he will be able to create it whenever you wish."

"You've done a good job."

"Thank you, sir. What happens next?"

"I have a new mission for you. All of our current plans will be put on hold and we're changing direction."

"May I ask what our new objective is?"

"There is no new objective."

"I see. Only a different approach?"

"Correct."

"Has it something to do with your companion?" Unsettling blue eyes focused on Harry where he was trailing a couple of steps behind the two men.

Loki stopped and stared the man down. "You're lucky I like you, Barton. You are very close to stepping out of line."

"Sorry, sir."

His father gave a sharp smile. "Your sharp intellect is part of that reason however, so I should not complain. Yes, the changes have everything to do with Harry."

"May I ask who he is?"

There was a pause where Harry held his breath. "No," Loki said. "All you need to know is that no harm is to come to him. If there comes a time when you need to choose between his life and yours, you'll choose his."

"Understood."

"That's not necessa-" Harry had to speak up. He didn't want anyone to sacrifice themselves for him, he thought about his mother and – James – He thought about Cedric, he thought about Quirrell too. He didn't want anyone to die because of him, especially not a man without free will.

"On the contrary, it is very necessary."

"You didn't know I existed before today," he protested.

"I do now and I will see that you are protected, telling Barton here that your life comes before his does not meant that he will allow himself to die easily. Tell him."

"My mission has long been to protect people," the controlled SHIELD agent said levelly, "continuing to do so now will be no hardship. I will keep you safe to the best of my ability."

Harry looked into the man's eyes, trying to see if the words were sincere or only uttered because that was what Loki wanted, because it was what he thought Harry wanted to hear. It was impossible to say. He wanted to believe the words. If what little he had learned about the man while still on the Helicarrier was true this sentiment was too.

"He is speaking the truth," Loki said close to his ear, Harry not having noticed that his father had moved, it sent shivers down his spine for all the wrong reasons. This situation was messed up. The Dursleys had really tried to achieve something impossible, he would never be normal.

"I know what you are thinking," Loki continued. "You're thinking that this is my doing. I can control his actions, not his heart. As long as he sees you as innocent he will gladly lay down his life for you, without regard for how doing so would serve my ends."

Harry looked to his father and the grin he saw on the man's face did nothing to put him at ease. "Then why won't you tell him who I am?"

"It's not something I want spread around."

"Why not?"

"I think you're a clever young man, Harry, why don't you take a guess?"

"Because people would use it against you."

"Without hesitation, you have already seen it happen. A loyal man might not tell a secret. A man who doesn't know the secret in the first place, is unable to tell it at all."

Feeling bold all of a sudden Harry straightened his back. "Are you expecting to lose?"

Loki grinned. "No, and I don't expect to lose since I'm playing it cautious. They," Harry didn't have to ask who they were, "think I'm arrogant. I am confident, not a fool. Letting them believe that I am arrogant will make them underestimate me, it's all part of the game."

Harry bristled. "So this is a game?"

"The very best, the game of life. We all lose in the end, but we get to decide how we go down and how our path shapes out."

"And what do you think is the best path? The best way to go down?"

"This conversation is getting a bit heavy to be having in public, we should get you settled."

"Answer the question." As he demanded it, Harry expected Loki to lash out in some way.

He did not. "Soon," was all he said, a calm dismissal. "Barton, your new mission."

"I'm at your disposal."

"You are to bring a man here. His name is Xenophilius Lovegood. Use the Tesseract to locate him."

"It will be done."

"I don't doubt it. We may have relocated by the time you return, if that is the case I will come to get you as soon as it's convenient."

"Understood."

"Come Harry, we'll go somewhere more comfortable.

Before Clint Barton could move away or Loki could force him to follow, Harry turned to the blond man. "Thank you," he said to Barton, trying to convey everything he was feeling in those two words. The gratefulness for the sacrifice and reassurance, the pain he felt at seeing someone bound and his regret at being able to do anything about it. He silently vowed that he would see the man freed if he could.

The man gave him a smile. Harry would have expected it to look stiff and wrong. It looked genuine, reaching his strange looking eyes, putting a sparkle in them. He might have liked it better if it didn't look like he meant it. "It's no problem." The man moved away, not sparing Harry another glance. Perhaps he'd gotten to see a glimpse of the real man. He hoped that Barton wouldn't hate him when he found out why Loki cared about his safety, that he would still be able to smile like that once this was all over, because one way or another it would end.

Loki brought him to another chamber, one that was empty besides a few crates. It was also completely dark. Harry refrained from making any comments. He'd already pushed a bit more than what might have been wise, there would be no use in making any smart quips.

"This place was always meant to be a temporary base," Loki said as he put down Harry's trunk on the floor. "We'll be moving somewhere more comfortable soon. You should be able to get by here interim."

Keeping quiet turned more difficult. Harry would get by, he had dealt with hardship before, but he hadn't expected it. Perhaps he should have. Loki was a fugitive; there would be no luxury to be had. He then noticed his father smirking, giving him a look that said he was missing something. "Are you a trained wizard?"

"I've attended Hogwarts."

"Then this should not be all that surprising." Before his eyes the room changed. It got warm, well lit, windows appeared on the walls showing a grassy field and lush trees, the floor turned to polished wood, getting partially covered by a carpet in vibrant colours. One create became a bed, another a set of plush chairs. Sparks that shimmered in green and gold swept over every surface and when they disappeared the room was unrecognizable, looking as if it belonged in a palace.

"Is this an illusion?" he asked breathlessly, remembering what Thor had said Loki excelled at.

"Yes and no, it is too complex for a simple label."

Harry cautiously walked into the room, he felt his feet sink into the carpet and when he reached out to touch one of the chairs his hand didn't fall through, it felt real, firm with smooth fabric.

"I can teach you to use magic as I do." Harry's throat constricted, his heart rate increasing. "I'd give you what knowledge I have to use as  _you_  please." Harry swallowed around a lump which had appeared in his throat. It seemed as if Loki had already got a read on him, knowing that he would not like violence and wouldn't use it himself unless forced, and he was accepting of that. The acceptance was in the way he said the words, letting Harry know that he could use his powers as he wished. It wasn't permission to stand above morals or laws, but permission to deviate from Loki's path of possible violence. Harry was still conflicted, and the route his thoughts were taking was not helping matters. He wasn't thinking about the beauty of magic for magic's own sake, he was thinking about assuring his own survival. He was thinking of what he had asked SHIELD to help him with. He was thinking of grasping the power needed to vanquish his nightmares of red eyes in a bone white, serpentine face.

He turned so that he was facing Loki head on. "Could you teach me to fight? To… to kill?"

Loki seemed at first surprised, than pleased. "Yes."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN 15th April 2015
> 
> How are you all feeling about Loki? Does he make a good father? Will he win Harry over or only push him away? I'd love to know what you think about this chapter and the story.
> 
> Mystic 777 allowed me to use a concept mentioned in a comment, thank you. And another thanks to Sevyn who won the little lottery I arranged last chapter. Thank you for opening up a path for the story that I would have been blind to myself. We'll see where it leads, but I think the journey will be good.
> 
> Next chapter should let us see what happened back in England after Harry's departure.
> 
> [Last edited August 2015]


	7. Family

Arthur sat down at the table in the Burrow's kitchen, pulling off his glasses and resting his head in his hands. It had been a long day at the Ministry with numerous reports of misuse of muggle artefacts coming in that he had to go out and take care off. It hadn't helped that his heart wasn't in it. He'd made several mistakes, resulting in everything taking far longer than it should have and ending with Perkins telling him to go home and pull himself together before he hurt someone. Arthur had gratefully followed the advice, Flooing home and leaving his colleague to deal with the latest crises to land on their table.

Despite his fatigue it felt strange rather than welcome that the house was so quiet. There were no echoes of voices. No noise of people moving on the upper floors. No sound of dishes washing themselves. No clicking of knitting needles steered by magic. He might have grown increasingly used to the house being empty as his younger children began to attend Hogwarts and the older ones moved away to begin living their lives on their own, but during summers they were always at home. The house was always full of people during the months of July and August. That had been a constant he could trust in.

Yet he was alone in the house he had built for his family. They were away at the Headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix where they would be safe. That they weren't safe in their own home cut at his pride as a wizard and a father. It felt like a failure that he did not have the strength to protect them. In the end his pride didn't matter, only his family's safety did, but he had failed at that too. He and Molly had slowly begun to think of Harry Potter as one of their own. Even if the boy had a godfather now, he and his wife had decided that starting this summer, as soon as Harry was with them again, they would begin acting more like they cared. They would make sure that the boy knew he was part of their family, with everything it entailed. Deciding to wait had been their mistake, an unforgivable mistake.

Harry was gone, having disappeared from the residence of his relatives not even two weeks after his arrival. Molly had been beyond furious, yelling at Albus Dumbledore about trusting the wrong people and being a daft, old fool. Arthur had never before seen her like that. The only time she had come close to it had been when Ginny had been taken down to the Chamber of Secrets, but that time despair had been stronger than anger. Arthur shared her sentiment. Dumbledore had been a foolish regarding Harry's well being and protection, but he was cautious about throwing out blame as he shared in it for not acting.

At the time of the disappearance, the person assigned to watch over Privet Drive had been Mundungus Fletcher, a wizard who was barely competent enough to deserve being called wizard. If his wife was asked, Mundungus did not deserve the right to be called a man either. Dung – as he was so charmingly called – was a low life, a swindler and a petty thief who could not be trusted and never should have been. Arthur understood why Albus wanted Dung to be part of the order, but that did not excuse his placement as a guard at Privet Drive. To trust Mundungus to be anything more than an informant of what was going on in the seedier parts of the wizarding world was stupid. Much as it had been stupid to leave Harry with his relatives.

They knew from what both Ron and the twins had told them, that Harry's home life wasn't good. Molly had made both one and two comments about the boy being too thin when he visited them during the summers, yet they had been able to see that as the school year progressed Harry gained a more appropriate weight for his age. It was because the boy spent so much of the year at Hogwarts that they had not intervened previously, but enough was enough. He should not have been left alone with hateful people, not after the trauma he had lived through. They had protested against placing Harry with his muggle relatives this summer and Albus had looked sad, but had insisted that it was necessary. The boy had to go there as the blood wards placed on the home gave Harry a powerful protection that lasted long after he left the home of his relatives. The suffering was a payment they could not escape. It would need a couple of weeks to grow strong, but they would take Harry away from there as soon as possible. They shouldn't have folded to the older man, that they had been able to abandon the boy after once more miraculously surviving You-Know-Who shamed Arthur. He would have to live with the shame, knowing that even if Harry was brought back safe and forgave them, they would not deserve it.

The uproar that had spread through the Order as Harry's disappearance was discovered when Nymphadora Tonks took over guard duty had been horrible. Y short lived all things considered. Soon they had learned some of what had happened from two varying sources. The first thing which had happened after Tonks reported in was that Dumbledore personally took a trip to Privet Drive.

There an enlightening conversation with Mrs. Petunia Dursley had followed. Harry's aunt had been displeased at letting a wizard into her home, but afraid enough of the venerable Headmaster to allow it, being willing to tell what had happened. She had disclosed how a man from the government had visited them, showing documents proving the identity of Harry's father, which wasn't James Potter and how she had more or less forced Harry to go with the man as she refused to house her nephew any longer. She hadn't cared if it was the truth, if the man was who he claimed or not. She was fed up and only wished for Harry to be out of sight and out of mind. It had been enough that he was the son of a witch and wizard, learning that he was half alien and the progeny of a criminal had been the straw that broke the camel's back. Any loyalty she still felt for Lily had died and if the boy died too… Arthur didn't know what she had said. Dumbledore had not had the energy to retell her words, looking older than ever before as he told the Order Members what he had learnt from Harry's aunt. Albus had gone on to say that he had been unable to get the identity of Harry's claimed father from Petunia Dursley, but that he had gotten the name of the agent who had visited him.

They had been partially relieved by what they had learned. It didn't seem as if Harry had been abducted by death eaters. He had left by his own volition and had been able to bring his belongings. A letter had also arrived hours later with Harry's owl, addressed to Arthur's youngest son, Ron. Harry claimed that he would be back in time for the return to Hogwarts and that he would be safe until then. It didn't mean that the Order had given up. There was no telling what Harry had gotten himself into even should the people involved in his relocation wish him no harm. He might believe that he was safe, but with He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named back, no one was safe. Then there was also the notion that Harry had a different father which had to be investigated.

They had followed the path Petunia Dursley had directed them on and located yet another disaster. Nearly every employ of the Muggle Special Forces had been exposed to the knowledge that magic was real. This catastrophe had yet to reach the ministry because the muggles were being cautious and not acting openly. To keep what had happened with Harry hidden, the Order took it upon themselves to try and contain the spreading information. They swept through several bases and obliviating all muggles they could find and going out searching for anyone who would know. The operation had stolen precious time and resources as anyone able to cast a rudimentary memory spell had been deployed, also accompanied by order members not as skilled with the spell to help them keep track of everyone whose memory had to be modified.

From Travis Stafford, the agent who had moved Harry, they learned where he had been taken. To North America, placed into the hands of an organisation called SHIELD. They were equipped to deal with powerful individuals, though they probably hadn't known about magic before either. They also learned the identity of the boy's father. Loki Odinson of Asgard. When this came to light there was another uproar in their ranks. No one wanted to believe that James Potter wasn't Harry's father, the boy looked so much like the man they had all known that anything else seemed inconceivable, but Arthur was beginning to think that there may be truth to it. He had stumbled upon Sirius Black and Remus Lupin sitting alone early one morning, muttering about how stupid they had been to even think of worshipping a God of Lies and Trickery and that they should have known it wouldn't end well.

A couple of days later they had managed to make contract with the American Ministry of Magic, hoping to reach SHIELD as discretely as possible through them. The Americans had admitted that they knew Harry Potter was within their borders and expressed surprise at their concern, having thought that it would be known by the people closest to the boy. Their ignorance had been used against them. A legal guardian had given permission for Harry's relocation and that was all there was to it. It was not their duty to inform a vigilante group about the location of a foreign citizen who had been granted permission to enter their country. It had taken a couple of days more to argue their case to satisfaction allowing them access to SHIELD and Harry, only by then it was too late. Loki had escaped and brought Harry with him, now they didn't the whereabouts of either of them.

The only remotely good thing to have come out of the ordeal was that they had established a new alliance. The Americans had not previously been interested in the problems that were brewing in Britain, but the contact that had been made had been the first step towards cooperation. If they offered assistance with Loki, which they would as Harry depended on them, the American wizards had agreed to put together a commission regarding Voldemort. If their investigation supported the Order's claim of the Dark Lord's return, they would be able to count on their assistance in any future conflict.

There was a knock on the front door, drawing Arthur out of his musings. He flinched and hit his elbow on the table, the pain which rushed through it making his face scrounge up in a grimace. It was late. There should be no one there to visit, unless something had gone wrong, but the Order normally sent messages by Patroni. Pulling out his wand keeping it at the ready, yet hidden, Arthur moved to answer the door.

"Xenophilius," he said in surprise was he saw the figure illuminated by the weak twilight that waited outside the door. Xenophilius Lovegood was one of the wizards who lived in Ottery St. Catchpole. He was known as an eccentric. The paper he published was known as the eccentric too, receiving more mockery than it was due. Arthur was on good terms with the man, not afraid to call him a friend and he knew that their daughters, who attended the same year at Hogwarts, were good friends as well. Arthur's night was not made better by seeing the white haired man standing there looking wild, unkempt and perhaps even afraid. "What's the matter?"

"I'm sorry to disturb you this late, Arthur."

"No need to apologise. You know you are welcome here if you need anything."

The man wouldn't meet his gaze, his pale, bulbous eyes flickered to and fro, he was wringing his hands and squirming in place. "If it isn't too much trouble I would ask you and Molly to keep an eye on Luna."

"Are you in trouble?"

"No!" The man's voice was a too loud, too shrill for the words to be believable. "Why would I be in trouble?" He laughed nervously. "No, I… While Luna and I were in Germany trying to find signs of Nachtkrapps, I met a man who told me an old acquaintance of mine was searching for me. He has a project he wishes my assistance with, but I don't want to drag Luna with me. She's fine to stay at home on her own. She's a sensible girl, but I'd like to know that she's looked out for."

"Of course," Arthur said. "Luna is welcome here if she needs anything and I'll look in on her every so often"

"Thank you."

Arthur looked around, trying to spot anything suspicious in the growing darkness. He could see nothing, yet he drew his wand and erected a privacy ward. His neighbour flinched at the magic. "Xeno, are you truly alright? Are you certain you want to do this?"

"Yes, of course." He backed away, nearing the ward line.

"You're not in trouble?" Arthur spoke louder, trying to coax his neighbour into speaking the truth. "We can help you if someone's trying to hurt you."

"No, no, no need to worry about me, just look after Luna." Before Arthur could press the man to say anything more he had rushed away, disappearing beyond the hedge that lined the property. He hoped that Xenophilius words had been true, and that the expression he wore didn't mean anything, but he worried. He would head over to the Lovegood residence in the morning to see to Luna. For now she would be safe in her home, but if her father remained gone for long they ought to bring her to Head Quarters. These times were worrying and now he was responsible for yet another child, one he was determined not to fail.

* * *

0.0.0

* * *

Before Loki had been able to say anything more than the admittance that he could teach Harry how to fight there had been a knock at the door and a summons to deal with the operation he had running, drawing him away from the young wizard. To Harry that was just as well. He needed a pause, a chance to breathe and reflect. It had all happened so fast. He felt confused about everything, wondering what he was actually feeling and what he should be feeling. He felt, in a way, numb. Perhaps because it was all too much. His short crying session after meeting Thor had allowed him to put his feet more firmly on the ground, but he had been torn up by the roots again and he only had himself to blame. He was in a dangerous situation. He didn't know what Loki was capable of, didn't know what his skills would permit him to accomplish or how far his morals would bend. Whenever he had faced Voldemort he had known more clearly what motives drove the man, that his singular focus had been to return and kill him, much easier to predict than an emotionally wrecked father who was over a thousand years old.

Harry had many questions, but he wasn't sure he could take any more answers right away. His head felt the same way as before the end of year exams, fuzzy or soft like overcooked vegetables, too full of unprocessed information, incapable of taking in any more. He needed to process what he already knew, what he had been through. He needed someone to speak with about it all everything that had happened over the last year from the attack at the Quidditch World Cup to his new found identity. He had not tried to do that with Thor or any of the other people he had got to meet at the Helicarrier, when they asked him to speak they hadn't been interested in him, they were focused on their mission and all they wanted from him was his magical knowledge. His uncle had been mostly the same, and once more Harry was to blame as he had asked for tales, unwilling to open up so soon. But he felt now that he needed to do so, and if the situation could be described as anything resembling normal, a parent would be the ideal person to confide in.

He had wished for the help, for the support of an adult before. Before he learnt that magic was real he had wished that a living relative would take him away and show him that he was worth something. If he gave Loki a chance he might take it and become a person he would be proud to call father. Thor had been convinced that what Loki was doing was stemming from learning that he was adopted. Perhaps they could find family in each other; perhaps they could help each other. It might only be a dream, but as he had come this far already Harry decided that he might as well go out on a limb and take another plunge. One of them had to take a first step to decide which direction they would go now; it might as well be him.

* * *

0.0.0

* * *

Harry didn't see Loki again until the next day. A woman had come with a warm meal for him in the evening and again in the morning. While he waited he had things in his truck to occupy him when he eventually grew bored of his own thoughts and couldn't rest any more. It was as he was flicking through the pages of the book on Norse mythology that agent Stafford had given him, that Loki returned.

"Good morning," he said and to Harry's ears it sounded stiff.

"Good morning," he said in reply and for half a second he thought about putting his plan into practice, trying to get closer to his father by calling him that, by saying  _dad_ , but the word died in his throat.

"Is everything to your satisfaction?"

"Yes, thank you," Harry answered, though what he wanted to say was more along the lines of  _I thought you were my dad, not the manager of a hotel who worrying about the opinions of an important client_. He understood the stiffness though, he felt it too. That was what they had to break through if this thing that they had started was to work. "Do you remember how I said that Harry Potter probably wasn't my real name?"

Loki's face twitched minutely. "Yes."

"I think magic had a say in what name would be put down. I have the birth certificate in my trunk if you wish to see it."

"Or you could tell me?"

Harry smiled hesitantly, that was satisfactory. The request implied trust, that he could be trusted over a piece of paper. "I'm afraid I'll butcher the name, pronouncing it wrong."

"It's yours, you could not damage it."

"Haraldr Lokison."

The man's eyes went soft, the skin around them crinkling in a small smile. "Haraldr," he said the name slowly, trying it out. "Not a bad name. Not bad at all. Would it be amiss if I called you by it? You must be used to the simplified form."

Harry shrugged. "I need to get used to my proper name sometime."

The small smile on this father's face grew. "As you wish. Haraldr."

"Before we begin anything I have one question for you."

"Okay."

"Is James Potter alive?"

"No." Harry had no idea why Loki would ask that, but he waited, thinking that if he only was a bit patient he might find out.

Loki made a small humming noise. "Thank you. Now I know how to act. Give me your wand."

"What?" If Loki wouldn't tell him he had to ask and he didn't want to give up his wand. Better than to outright say no, was to ask a question, distracting. "What does James Potter have to do with anything? How did you know my mother?"

"It concerns our connection. How you came to be and how I knew your mother. The story is not one you are likely to appreciate."

"And therefore you won't tell me?"

"There's a time and a place for everything."

"And this isn't the time?"

Before his eyes it was as if Loki changed. The god sighed, shoulders slumping and he sat down on one of the chairs. It might be a play to win sympathy or it might be the true Loki coming through, Harry couldn't judge. "I wished to show you something good before confessing the bad," he said. "I know that it has not been long since we met, Haraldr, but I also know that you already have a preconceived notion of what I am like. The way we met does not allow a blank slate. I will have to prove myself above all that you've heard and starting by telling a story of deception did not strike me as the ideal way. Yet I do not wish to lie to you. I wish to be as open with you as I can permit as I know how much lies and admittance can hurt. I will seek to not hurt you in that way unless I can help it. I will not confide all my plans in you, I cannot burden you with that, but ask and I will either give you an answer or an honest admittance that the knowledge cannot be yours."

"So can this knowledge be mine? Do I not deserve to know the story of my own origin?"

"Of course you do. You deserve this truth and if you ask to hear the story now I will not hold back from telling you."

"I want to know." It hadn't been the plan. The plan hadn't been to grab after more knowledge, but now that it was offered Harry could not resist and learning this fitted in to his initial wishes upon learning his father's identity.

Loki invited Harry to sit down in the chair opposite him, and once Harry had done so, he began to speak. "In parts of Midgard, Asgard is remembered. Witches and wizards were better record keepers than most humans who lived at the time when we visited more actively. Though they had powers of their own, they worshipped us for our strength and wisdom. I was well liked by them, they respected my magical knowledge. While the farmers and warriors gaped in awe at Thor, the witches and wizards preyed to me to better teach them how to harness their powers. My legacy remained." The man smirked contentedly.

"I had never heard of you in this context."

There was a quirk of the elder's lips, displeased, or perhaps sardonic in nature. "It does not surprise me, the knowledge of my existence has slowly been disappearing without me actively keeping it alive on a large scale. There are only a few who still actively believe, who know the truth. This is why I was amused when four young wizards tried to summon me. Can you guess at who they were?"

Harry could. It wasn't difficult to put two and two together, knowing the framework he had to work with, what Loki was famous for and what four boys attending Hogwarts some twenty years earlier had been up to. "The Marauders."

"Yes, that is what they called themselves. Mischief makers who I believe wished to learn from me and offered their worship in return. While I might have been inclined to accept, I decided to play a trick on them first. The trick did not go as planned."

"What did you do?" Harry was beginning to imagine things, things he'd rather not think about when it came to his parents, things that had to have happened for him to exist, but at the same time it lit a small, warm flame in his chest that he had the chance to become embarrassed over that sort of thing, something he had never imagined that he would get to feel.

"I pretended to be James Potter."

Harry stilled completely, holding his breath and his eyes watered as Loki shifted until he looked just like the James Potter he had seen in so many photographs. It was eerie and he wished that he had not been forced to see it. He wanted to protest against the image before him, but he could not find the air needed to speak the words.

"I took this form, placing the real James in stasis, intending it to be a short trick. It changed when I met Lily. At first her beauty was what took me, I thought that pretending to be her husband for a while longer would only make the trick better, while allowing me to enjoy the company of an attractive witch. But for each moment I spent with her the excuse I had presented to myself grew weaker. I spent nearly seven months living the life of James Potter because of Lily. I enjoyed myself. James Potter's life was easy, a good life, a life that did not resemble mine. Eventually my duties called me back to Asgard. I left the real James Potter in my stead, giving him a modified set of my memories and everyone was left unknowing that I had been masquerading as him.

"I was intending to return. To either permanently overtake the life of James Potter, making up an excuse for my prolonged absence at home, or to tell the truth the way I had planned before the trick went too far. When I returned, later than I would have wished, I could not find Lily or James or any of their friends. I only spent a short time searching before I once more was called back to Asgard urgently and I told myself that my chance was gone, that it had all been a foolish notion which I should forget. I thought I had forgotten. Yet here you are and I will never be able to forget again."

Harry continued looking into the hazel eyes Loki now showcased. The surreal feeling of seeing a dead man sitting before him had abated somewhat and did not take up much of his concentration. He was trying to make up his mind about what he thought. Perhaps he should feel righteous anger on James and Lily's behalf. They had been tricked. One had been stolen of seven months of his life, the other tricked into thinking that a stranger was her husband. It was outrageous, a betrayal. But Harry had never known them, it wasn't personal and if Loki was to be believed the trick hadn't been done maliciously either. If no one had noticed him walking around in James's shape he couldn't have done anything bad during that time. While he had not admitted it outright it did sound as if Loki had cared for Lily. Harry couldn't think of love as something bad and he didn't think you could help who you fell in love with. He wasn't pleased by the story, he couldn't be, but it did not make him think any less of Loki and he did believe him. The story didn't paint him in good light and if it was a lie he would have wished to make himself look better.

"Could you change back?" was what he ended up asking. Seeing James Potter sitting in front of him, short black hair standing on end, glasses on his nose and a dark red robe falling around him felt wrong. He might be able to forgive Loki for stealing another man's life for his own, but with the man in question dead it was a mockery to take his form. The dead should be left alone. Besides seeing James Potter was like looking seeing a twisted reflection of his own face. It was bizarre how alike all three of them were in appearance.

"Certainly." The illusion thankfully melted away, leaving the normal shape of Loki behind. Harry called it normal since he suspected that it wasn't the true form. What he had glimpsed in the cage on the Helicarrier was probably true; blue skin and red eyes, not the pale skin and semi green he now saw. "What does this story make you think?"

"I have not decided what I should think yet. If you have given me honesty-"

"I have."

"If you have given me honesty," Harry repeated with more steel in his voice. He wanted a father, but to this man he had to prove himself worthy, he had thought so before and his stance had not changed, "I would like to give you the same. From the stories Thor have told me-"

Loki snorted. "What has that fool been telling you?"

"If you hadn't interrupted maybe you'd already know."

"My apologies, you should not have to suffer for any ill will I have towards him. Please continue."

"The first thing he said was that he did not wish to come between us and I cannot say that he has. He has only spoken well of you, letting me know of times when you rescued him from trouble and the like."

"Did he now? Soft-hearted fool."

"Do you really think people fools for believing that there are good in others? For being trusting? For caring?"

The set of questions seemed to chip away at yet another layer Loki had put up to protect himself. "Caring, trust, belief in others' inherent goodness is the most fatal weakness anyone can have."

"Why bother with me then? Am I only a tool for you to use?"

"Who interrupted the other now?"

Harry did not apologize, but he kept silent waiting to hear what more his father would say.

"Weakness is something I find difficult to accept anymore, perhaps I always did. But I do know that it is necessary and that you cannot find true greatness or live a full life if you only seek to avoid being weak. It is when we dare to be weak that we find what is truly precious. You could easily become my weakness, Haraldr, but in becoming so you would also be my strength."

"I don't know what you expect me to say to that."

"I do not expect anything from you."

"But you do," Harry insisted. "You have already built up a picture of me, same as you accused me of doing with you. I don't know what you see when you look at me."

"I see parts of myself in you, in your caution, in your unwillingness to show weakness, in your boldness at seeking out your family, in how you are walking a thin line while interacting with me. I also see some of Lily. I saw how you looked at Barton, how you have already earned the sympathy and liking of the people back at the Helicarrier. To earn the liking of so many requires more than pretty words and charm crafted into a mask of likability and acceptable morals, it requires genuineness. If we are done with this line of inquiry I will pose a question of my own."

"Ask."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN 3rd May 2015
> 
> Hello everyone! Sorry for cutting it off more or less mid sentence, but it was long enough and I needed to cut somewhere before the chapter doubled in length.
> 
> Avengers Age of Ultron is most parts of the world (I think). I've seen it. I loved it. There might be spoilers for it in this story, if there are any I'll put a warning at the top of the chapter that's concerned.
> 
> I promised some reviewers more Harry/Loki bonding. I think I lived up to that. You also got a relatively brief explanation for what's happened in England, I hope it was more or less satisfactory.
> 
> Now I have a few questions for you to help you flesh out your reviews ;) What do you think of the Order's actions? Do you believe Loki's story for explaining how Harry was fathered and his general stance? Why is Xenophilius Lovegood so afraid? And as always, if you are willing to share, I'd love to know your overall thoughts on the story so far.
> 
> Before you all click away I have an omake for you from the last chapter. I only came up with it after posting and it wouldn't have fit completely either.
> 
> "I'll find out how he's doing that teleport thing, magic be damned. I'll go Gandalf on his ass and make sure that he cannot pass again."  
> "You shouldn't fall down together with the Balrog!"  
> "I'd come back as the White-Iron Man, better, stronger. No need to worry. Hey, you know Lord of the Rings!" Tony exclaimed happily.  
> "I think even Rogers would recognize that reference," Bruce said.  
> "Nah, he's still defrosting, he wouldn't have had the time to see many movies, never mind reading the trilogy. Though he might know the Hobbit, I'll have to remember to check."
> 
> [Last edited August 2015]


	8. What Lies Within

There was a brief pause before Loki asked his question. "How did Lily die?"

Harry immediately turned suspicious, he couldn't help it. It didn't matter how many times he told himself that he wanted to trust Loki – that he would – he couldn't seem to do it. Telling himself to trust Loki without getting further evidence in favour of doing so didn't work any better than Ron telling himself that he wasn't hungry when his stomach rumbled just before dinner, or Hermione telling herself not to be nervous over the result of a test when she could line up all the mistakes she knew she'd done. "Why do you want to know?" he asked back.

Loki's brow furrowed and rose, creating rounded lines in the skin. "Why wouldn't I want to know about her death considering what I told you?"

He had to concede to that. Loki had if he was to be believed known Lily, cared for her, possibly even loved her though those words remain unsaid. Whether the story he had told was true he had seen something in Loki's expression the first time he said his mother's name. "Sorry."

"No harm done. Was it Voldemort?"

"You know about him?"

"Did you at all listen to the story I told you?" Loki's voice came out in a snap, sounding harsher than Harry had heard it directed at him so far and he lowered his eyes in a silent apology. It was relief mixed with doubt that made him ask the last question. If Loki knew about Voldemort it was likelier that he had indeed pretended to be James Potter. There were other ways to know, sure, but if things continued like this, if new evidence for the story Loki had told continued to pile up he would be able to put his suspicions to rest. The prospect was a good one.

Loki sighed and continued. "Yes, I know about him and the  _war_ he had declared on magical England to bring about change and give himself power. It would not come as a surprise if he had something to do with Lily's death. She was a formidable witch who fought against him and he knew that killing someone is the only certain way to permanently remove opposition."

"He killed her…" Harry looked back up. "He murdered her and James."

"Then two more good people died at his hands."

"I should have died too. He cast the killing curse at me, but I didn't die, instead people think it reflected and killed him. But he wasn't dead, not completely. He became a wraith or something. He hid away for many years, gathering strength, but he's back. He had an elaborate scheme to get to me. He wanted to use my blood. I was put in a position where I would touch a Portkey which took me to him. He used my blood in a ritual and got himself a new body. He tried to kill me again after that, but something weird happened with our wands and I escaped."

Once done with the abbreviated story of what had happened to Voldemort Harry felt almost like putting his hand over his mouth in horror of what he had just been spewing and way too quickly too. The words had become a near indecipherable blur. He had tried so hard to be eloquent when speaking to all these adults he had met over the last week, especially Loki, wanting to make a good impression. Now all his work might have become undone for no better reason than that he had let his emotions get the best of him. Upon saying the first words of the recount a floodgate had been opened, letting forth a tidal wave. Perhaps he had been in more dire need to speak with someone than he had understood and together with having prepared mentally to share his story with Loki this had been the result. Now it was all out there and in a way that was a relief but it hadn't happened the way he had pictured with a collected retelling of everything, coupled with vivid imagery to make a good story and what he had felt since he wanted to unburden himself. He looked to his father, trying to judge how he had taken it. To see if he disliked Harry's jargon or disapproved of what he had tried to communicate. Loki's expressive eyebrows were slightly raised, but besides that his expression was fairly blank, possibly a bit sympathetic which relaxed Harry.

"Voldemort was dead, but came back you say?"

"Probably. I couldn't say for sure, but he was without a body until a few weeks ago."

"I see. And you survived the killing curse?"

"That's what I've been told, that I am the only one who has survived it. It has made me famous," the last bit was said bitterly. His fame had brought him nothing good. He'd rather not be famous for surviving what so many others had not.

"And who told you that?"

Harry shrugged and as he did so he noticed the furrowing of Loki's brow occurring again, he got the impression that his father did not enjoy it when he shrugged and he knew that he should avoid the gesture in the future if he wanted to keep making a good impression. "It's common knowledge. I couldn't possibly say who figured it out first."

"Did the curse leave a mark?"

It was uncanny how spot on the question was. Harry had vaguely known it, known that Loki would have more knowledge of magical things and the universe than anyone he had previously met, but he had not thought that he would be so well versed in the magic of wizards. If he had truly lived as James Potter for several months he might know a lot about that too. "Yes," he murmured and in a well practiced gesture he swiped away his fringe so that the scar became visible.

Loki got up from his chair and crouched down next to Harry, their faces almost levelled. "May I?" he asked reaching out with his hand.

Understanding what he wanted and trusting that he wouldn't actually harm him, Harry nodded yes. The touch of Loki's fingers when they gently prodded at his scar felt much the same as when the skin had been blue. It was a feeling of dry skin that was neither warm nor cool, just…  _there_. While Loki's gaze was locked on the scar Harry watched his eyes, taking in the swirls of colour of the irises. There were many colours mingling there, it made the eyes interesting to look at. A dark edge bordered them, there a field of greyish-blue and then some warmer grey in the middle which almost gave the eye an impression of being green. Harry had thought that they were green before but after seeing his own eyes in the mirror Harry could no longer say that they were green. It seemed as if it still held true that he had his mother's eyes.

Harry blinked and looked away when Loki's eyes turned down, focusing on his, his hand falling away from the scar. Looking away was a reflex, one that said he had something to hide. He did not, so he quickly looked back.

"I cannot tell much without using magic, it may be painful if I do."

"What could you possibly learn?"

"If it was caused by the killing curse or something else, how it has affected you, if it's harmful. I will say it again, depending on what I stir up it can be very painful."

"Do you think we should do it?"

"Yes," Loki replied. "If it is harming you we need to know so that it can be removed and healed."

It made sense. Dumbledore had theorised that Voldemort had left some of his power behind, localized to the scar, but there was no telling if there was more to it, not unless he allowed Loki to find out. Besides he was no stranger to pain. He could deal. "Do it."

Loki nodded and brought his hand back up, resting it more firmly on the scar, a hard pressure compared to the previously soft touches. In his peripheral vision Harry saw sharp light and then there was pain, pain that came suddenly and was terrible and intense. It made him scrunch up his eyes tightly and flinch back. His movement was hindered by Loki moving lightning fast to place his other hand on the side of his Harry's head, holding him still. His scar really, really hurt. Stinging, aching, smarting, screaming out that something was wrong. It was hurting the same way as it had in the graveyard when Voldemort had touched him. It felt as if his skull would split open from the scar, and he wanted to vomit, the pain was so bad. If only it would stop.

"Breath," Loki ordered him.

Harry drew in a gulping breath, unable to do anything but follow the order when it was given in that voice. He hadn't noticed that he'd held his breath in the first place, too busy dealing with the sensations emanating from his forehead.

With air in his lungs now he screamed with the relentless onslaught of agony, letting out a long wail which choked and began over again until he could no longer scream. The pain went on relentlessly, growing and spreading. It transmuted to feel as if his scull wouldn't just split, no it wouldn't do something as boring and ordinary as that, it would fracture into a million tiny pieces and he would be dead, but that would be preferable to the pain. Only this wasn't an enemy doing this, it was his father. "Stop," he tried to say. He couldn't manage the word, his throat too sore. He tried to swallow to make his mouth produce saliva that would help him speak; it only made him gag as he near enough choked on his own tongue. Gasping for a few long moments he tried again, this time managing a hoarse whisper. "Stop it."

"Only a moment longer."

He couldn't take a moment longer. "Please."

The pain stopped abruptly and Harry was left pulling in air raggedly, feeling mildly nauseous and drained. He felt like crying and as he thought it, sobs began to crawl their way up through his sore throat. He had thought that he could handle the pain but it was so much worse than he had imagined. It was too much and he was powerless to stop the tears. Arbitrarily it didn't help one bit when arms were wrapped around him and he was held tightly, securely against a hard chest. He sobbed harder, to taken by the lingering memory of the pain and the remains of the ordeal to think about what the pressure meant. Loki was warm and rocked him gently, making a soothing hushing noises, stroking his hair. From where he touched warmth spread, numbing the remaining hurt, healing him gently. Harry clung onto his father, taking the freely given comfort. He gradually calmed down, feeling warm, secure and exhausted.

"Sorry," he said once he could get words out passed the sobs that rocked through his body. He felt the need to apologize though he wasn't sure of what. Perhaps for that he hadn't been strong enough to hold on for as long as Loki wanted, perhaps for crying all over the god.

Loki just hushed him wordlessly same as he had done before, continuing to stroke slowly through his hair.

Eventually Harry pulled away from the embrace. No matter how good the physical comfort felt, it also made him feel uneasy. Loki may be his father, but they hardly knew each other. They'd met a day before. Besides the man was a… Harry didn't know what exactly he was. Thor might say that he was a lost soul. Bruce hadn't said anything in front of Harry but he got the impression that the scientist thought Loki was crazy. Steve thought he was dangerous. Natasha thought the same as the Captain, but in less flattering terms and Tony had not been shy about calling him an unhinged megalomaniac with sociopathic tendencies.

Breaking down before Loki could have been dangerous. All things considered Harry could only be happy that it currently seemed as if Thor was the closest when it came to describing his father. Lost. It might make him all the things the others thought but it also meant that there was more. A human side under the hard exterior of metal, hurt and anger. Maybe.

"Sorry," he said again, his voice rough from his crying, but not nearly as bad as it had been before Loki healed it. His eyes were red rimmed and sore, his cheeks wet. He rubbed his sleeve over his face to wipe away the worst of it, pulling a disgusted face as some snot mixed with the water from his tears.

"You do not need to apologize. After a just trial, emotions are to be expected. You were brave who chose to face the pain knowing that the outcome would be worth it and you faced it as well as I could have expected. You held out long enough that it was not in vain."

"I don't feel like I handled it well," Harry muttered.

"You bore with it for a long time before you asked me to stop. I cannot say exactly how bad what you felt was but I can make a well educated guess and most men would have begged for an end long before you did. Fighting out the pain like you did is proof of strength, not weakness. Regardless of whatever perceived notions you have or suspect me to hold of weakness, you should let them go. You should never think that you need to hide them from my sight or that weakness when faced with something larger than you is something of which to be ashamed."

"But-"

"Hush, I am telling you something important."

Harry closed his mouth and listened. This speech was not something he had expected. He'd thought that Loki would abhorrer weakness. That was the impression he had gotten and the man had said so himself, said that he had difficulty accepting weakness.

"I will not begrudge you tears or ignorance." Loki reached out and took his hand, re-initiating physical contact. It felt warm, rekindling the comfort from earlier, rekindling the feeling of belonging and family that had briefly sprouted within Harry while he was in his father's embrace. The touch worked as an anchor, something the teenager felt grateful for, it put the stirring doubt to rest for the time being.

"You are my son," his father said steadily, the words lighting a small, warm fire in Harry's chest from the kindling that had just been placed there with the physical touch, "and it is my duty to pick you up when you fall down, to dry your tears, letting you know that everything will be alright." From nowhere he produced a handkerchief. He hesitated a little before he allowed Harry to take it himself and wipe off what tears his sleeve had missed. "It is my duty to teach you, to help you grow so that one day you will no longer need the help, because you will no longer fall, only make others crumble to become your stepping stone on your way to greatness. I cannot expect you to never show pain, to never be upset, to never make mistake. I can only expect you to keep fighting the long battle, to not let defeat pull you down indefinitely, to learn with every new experience, to grow stronger. Do you think you can do that for me, Haraldr?"

"Yes." Harry did believe so. It was what he'd always done. Rising again, brushing off the dust, knowing where he had gone wrong and trying to not make the same mistake again. If Loki wouldn't demand more, he could do it.

He got a nod and a small smile in return. "Do you feel recovered enough to hear what I learned about your scar?"

"Is it bad?"

"It could be better."

"Tell me?"

"As you wish. A soul shard lives within you, anchored to the scar."

Harry felt everything still. He was holding his breath again, his heart might be beating still but it didn't feel like it. He was losing sensation in his fingers and toes. Everything felt cold.

"Haraldr," Loki snapped.

Harry drew in a breath; following his father's order same as before. This time however he used it for something a bit more articulate than a scream. "A piece of Voldemort's soul is within me?" It was a statement as much as a question.

"Yes."

"That's why we have the connection, why I can speak to snakes. Merlin." The handkerchief Loki had given him was a scrunched up ball within his fist.

"You did not tell me this before."

"We didn't get that far. What does it mean? How dangerous is it? How do we get rid of it?" There was no doubt in his mind that it was dangerous and that he wanted it gone. Knowing that he had a piece of the man who had murdered his mother and so many others within him, made him feel unclean. Dirty. Stained. Defiled. Tainted. It was so much worse than only having some of Voldemort's powers. If it had only been magic he could think of it as having become his, but a piece of a soul could never become part of him, could never be him, it was fully the Dark Lord.

"It's surprisingly not very malevolent."

"Not malevolent!" Harry protested, eyes wide. "How can it not be when it causes me such pain?"

"Don't mistake me. The shard not having the outright intention to damage you does not make it benevolent. It is a parasite; a base creature that cannot be compared to a full human. Whatever feeble consciousness it has, only possesses one intent; survival. It has used you to survive. If it had been stronger it would have tried to take over your body when it entered you as a child, but it could not. Consequently it decided to protect you as its host, helping you as best it could. It may have been a part of Voldemort once, but it has been separated long enough to become an independent entity, adapting to you. It is not certain that it would be able to survive at all if separated from you. For that to occur, some rather specific criteria would have to be met."

"What criteria?"

"Voldemort would have to be conscious of its existence, and he would have to accept it back to the whole. I think we can be certain that will happen."

"Why?"

"The exact circumstances of the tearing of the shard would have to be replicated in reverse. Hate and terrible intent form to commit murder and powered by magic can tear the soul apart. Do you think Voldemort capable of the opposite?"

Harry thought on it. Pondering what the opposite of hate might be. He thought Dumbledore would immediately answer love, but Harry thought both hate and love were more complex than that. It might depend on what Voldemort hated. The hate of weakness might need acceptance. The hate of a person based on things out of their control, the way muggleborns could not chose to be born to parents without magic, might need understanding to be reversed. Hate born from betrayal might need forgiveness. Love could perhaps make all of them sprout, making it a blanket term for it all, meaning that the Headmaster would be right. Harry didn't think Voldemort would be capable to feel the opposite of hate, whatever it was. Then it had to be combined with the opposite of intent, whatever that might be. Perhaps the feelings had to come without the intent to use them to get the soul shard back, perhaps it had to be felt naturally, truly. If so it was another point against Voldemort's success. Then there was the last criterion. Voldemort would have to know that the soul shard existed within Harry. Harry wasn't going to say anything and he didn't think Loki would either.

"No," he answered. "I don't think Voldemort would be able to reverse the process."

"Then we have reached the same conclusion. The shard will safeguard its own survival not Voldemort's. As long as your goals are aligned it will be a tentative ally to you."

"Are you suggesting that I keep it?"

"For the time being. You do not seem to like my suggestion."

"I don't. It feels wrong to have a piece of Voldemort, no matter how much it has changed, within me."

Loki smiled. "I'd say that it would feel stranger if it was removed. You have grown used to its presence. You may feel empty without it. Removing it would mean going through the same pain again, and it may well last longer. From what I could determine, your soul is entwined tightly with the shard. I can remove it, but it would take power I cannot spare at this time, besides," here his smile turned into a shark like grin, "through it we have a connection to Voldemort. I can teach you to better use it, and if you allow it, I can use it through you. Until the time comes when we can strike against him, we can survey him to know what he is planning and once the time comes to end him, the connection can be used to locate him."

"You'll help me stop him?" Harry got excited. This was what he wanted, why he had played along with SHIELD as they brought him away with the intent to use him.

His father scoffed. "As if I'd allow a blatant threat against my son, like to so called Dark Lord, to remain. Put him out of your mind for now. He'll be dealt with in due time."

"Why does it have to wait? You make it sound like killing Voldemort would be easy." Harry didn't want to sound petulant, yet he feared that was how he came out sounding and at the same time he felt that it was a just query. If Loki knew so much, if he was as powerful as he was letting on, then the You-Know-Who nonsense should be easily dealt with and putting it to rest should be no skin of his back.

"It will be, yet it if it is to be done properly to make sure that Voldemort has no way of coming back again it will have to be planned carefully and done in a timely manner. It is time I cannot spare at this time, I have a greater picture to think about."

"So what is it that you are trying to accomplish? Why did you come to earth in the first place? What happened to you after the destruction of the Bifrost?"

"Ah, Thor has told you about that too. Of course he did." Loki rose abruptly to his feet, his coat sweeping out behind him. "That is a story for another day I should think. It is not pleasant and you've been through enough already. When you came to see me on their flying ship you told me that you wished to understand me."

"Yes."

"You want to believe that I am acting for a reason beyond the power hunger the so called heroes have attributed to me."

"Yes," Harry said again.

"All you need to know for now is that I am. I have been burdened with purpose that far outmatches the wizards in England's little war. Purpose greater than any conflict on this planet and greater than the very nine Realms and their squabbles. Things that have remained unknown for an age are stirring in the universe and we have to prepare. If we are to see the other side of what is to come we will have to pay a high price. I am prepared to pay it. I don't think Thor or his peers are, they are willing to take a risk everything, willing to keep their moral high ground even if it will surely doom them."

"Dying isn't the worst thing," Harry interjected. "Fighting for what you believe in, fighting to be good can be worth dying for."

"Naïve, Haraldr, naïve." Loki shook his head. "Yes, there is a line to be drawn that shouldn't be crossed. I am only willing to be more flexible in where I draw it. You are correct in that dying isn't the worst thing. So I ask you; does it not make a man a hero if he is willing to sacrifice his morals, his goodness, his  _humanity_ , for the greater good?"

Harry didn't know what to say. He had never thought of heroism like that. Courage he had been told was not the absence of fear but the strength to fight on despite the fear. Perhaps this worked the same way. A hero's sacrifice might be worth more with the increase of the sacrifice that was offered. If death was easy, then giving up one's very self might be the grander thing to do.

Loki didn't seem to think Harry would give an answer because he continued without receiving one. "If you have patience and show yourself worthy I may impart onto you the full extent of what we are facing. Knowledge is a terrible and magnificent thing. Until such a time that I know you can understand it, can handle it, I know that I must keep the worst of it from you. When my actions do not match up to what you know, to the morals you hold, I need you to know that there is a reason for everything."

Harry understood that there was no use in arguing, the tone his father had used made it perfectly clear that he was not to be questioned. "Fine," he said.

"Shall we agree to be done with the doom and gloom for today?"

Harry was taken aback by the sudden change in demeanour. Before Loki had acted haughty, self entitled, showing the same assurance as when he had given his little farewell speech on the Helicarrier, now he suddenly seemed light hearted, young and… mischievous. "Should I be worried?" he asked hesitantly.

"Only a little bit."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN 23rd May 2015
> 
> So, how's their relationship progressing do you think? What is Loki thinking? What is he planning? Care to take a guess? I'd love to hear what you can think up.
> 
> I hope you enjoyed the chapter!
> 
> By the way I went and saw Age of Ultron again, I sat there and thought about what my Harry - who by the time Age of Ultron happens has the potential of being fairly overpowered - would contribute. It also made me think of an opposite of sorts and I wanted to explore an alternative scene. I'm sharing it with you and hope you enjoy this what-could-have-been from chapter 5.
> 
> The man made a show of lifting one of his hands, holding it up so that both of them could see it. As they watched the skin turned from a pale skin colour to deep-blue. The colour spread slowly from the fingertips up to the wrist, raised patterns in swirls lying on the back of the hand. They were beautiful in an exotic and dangerous fashion, like the pattern on the back of a poisonous snake.
> 
> "Loki!" Harry and Loki both turned to the side to see Thor striding to the edge of the glass cage, Mjolnir in his hand, Steve and Natasha were at his heels. "I beseech you, brother! Do not harm him!"
> 
> "Harm him?" Loki chuckled darkly, white teeth flashing. "Either this is a play where you try to make a fool of me, if so there is no need for me to care if he is hurt," he paused, cocking his head slightly. "Or this is actually what I am being led to believe and my touch will do him no harm."
> 
> He placed his hand lightly on Harry's face.
> 
> Harry screamed.
> 
> It burned. The touch burned him. It was pain like nothing he had felt before. It couldn't compare to the Cruciatus curse as it was centred on such a small part of his body, and it felt different from where he had been stabbed by the basilisk fang too. He was aware that Loki was no longer touching him, yet it continued to burn as if a small fire was consuming his flesh.
> 
> "How disappointing," Loki mumbled, while the people outside the cage cried Harry's name or raged at Loki.
> 
> "Why would you risk touching him?" Thor called, looking half ready to put Mjolnir against the glass of the cage to free Harry and bring him to safety. "You know children are not as durable as we! Benign half mortal he could be double so before his maturity!"
> 
> Harry was just whimpering now, he had tried to touch his cheek with his hand, instinctively and dumbly seeking out the injury. He couldn't, it was too cold. He didn't understand why. He had been burnt, it should be hot.
> 
> "You continue with this farce?" Loki said, clicking his tongue. "I have seen through your plan, you can drop your pretence."
> 
> "It is no pretence. I had not thought you capable of harming a child, especially not your own. Today you have proven me wrong."
> 
> Loki chuckled, he seemed terribly amused by the whole situation, something Harry couldn't sympathise with. "You are unbearably naive, same as always."
> 
> "He is your son. I have seen documents where magic marked it so, this is no play, only circumstance. You were willing to believe it. You must know it's possible. Look at him. Can you not see how he share's your looks? It is no illusion."
> 
> Loki looked back to Harry, critically examining his pained, sweaty face and fierce green eyes. "I suppose some more examinations will not hurt." He spared another glance for Thor before he grabbed Harry's shoulder and transported them away only leaving a few golden green sparks behind that soon faded into nothing.
> 
> [Last edited August 2015]


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